Tim Blair: Riots in Washington were terrible, but the left have ignored others

Finally, following years of violent protests against the departing President, an uprising occurred that leftists and the media both detected and condemned, writes Tim Blair.

We’re all agreed then. Last week’s Capitol Building riot in Washington was a disgrace and police should round up and charge everybody who participated in this shocking affront to democracy.

On this, conservatives and leftists speak as one. It’s just that conservatives have had a little more practice.

We’ve been condemning political violence for years. Our friends on the left, however, are new to this game.

They ignored or downplayed riots across the US throughout last year, sometimes hilariously.

In August, left-leaning CNN ran this caption during coverage of an uprising in Wisconsin: “Fiery but mostly peaceful protests after police shooting.”

A protester is seen hanging from the balcony in the US Senate chamber last week. Picture: Win McNamee/Getty Images

A pro-Donald Trump protester yells inside the US Senate chamber. Picture: Win McNamee/Getty Images

Mostly peaceful? On screen, live scenes depicted a city ablaze.

In May, MSNBC’s Ali Velshi ­reported from Minneapolis: “This is mostly a protest. It is not, generally speaking, unruly.”

Too bad about all the buildings being incinerated nearby.

Those fires, Velshi pointed out helpfully, were caused by “people who are doing things to public property that they shouldn’t be doing”.

He then offered this excuse: “This city has got, for the past several years, an issue with police, and it’s got a real sense of the deep sense of grievance of inequality.”

By destroying businesses and jobs, protesters representing Black Lives Matter and Antifa — a fascist outfit that pretends to fight fascism — are creating inequality.

Anti-Trump agitators have been doing so since even before President Donald Trump was sworn in.

A supporter of US President Donald Trump sits inside the office of US Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Picture: Saul Loeb/AFP

Police hold back supporters of US President Donald Trump as they gather outside the US Capitol. Picture: Olivier Douliery/AFP

“Do you remember when President Trump was inaugurated on January 20, 2017?” US lawyer and commentator John Hinderaker asked on the day of the latest riot.

“Leftist Democrats rioted in Washington that day. That riot was arguably worse, more violent and more destructive than what happened in D.C. yesterday.

“The liberal rioters destroyed stores, set vehicles on fire and battled with the police. Six police officers were wounded.”

Limo driver Luis Villarroel’s car was torched after dropping off clients at the inauguration.

“I think they think that the limo represents people who are rich and use the limo,” he said.

In fact, the limo was from a company owned by Pakistani immigrant Muhammad Ashraf, who faced a $100,000 debt following the attack. Great work, kids.

Last week’s deadly assault on the Capitol Building was different to riots in Portland, Seattle, Kenosha, Minneapolis and elsewhere, so people keep claiming, because it was incited by Trump.

The rioters acted contrary to the words of US President Donald Trump. Picture: Timothy Clary/AFP

You’ll have noticed, though, that claims of incitement are never supported by any actual quotes.

“I read the entire speech — which was over an hour — looking for the sentences that are most subject to the interpretation that he was inciting the crowd to break into the Capitol building or commit any sort of act of violence,” US pundit Ann Althouse observed of Trump’s comments prior to the demonstration.

“I’m doing this because I realised I wasn’t seeing quotes from Trump, just assertions that the speech was an incitement and cause-and-effect inferences based on the sequence of events: He spoke and then they acted.”

And they acted contrary to Trump’s words: “I know everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol Building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.”

Presumably his critics feel Trump incited events by rejecting the 2020 election’s legitimacy. You know, exactly as his critics have done for the past four years.

There’s no shortage of incitement getting around, if that’s our standard.

An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while supporters of US President Donald Trump gather in front of the Capitol building. Picture: Leah Mills/Reuters

Leftist media’s previous strongest statement against rioting came from CNN’s hopeless Don Lemon, who boldly came out against violence because it might harm President-elect Joe Biden’s election chances.

“Guess what, the rioting has to stop,” Lemon said during last year’s campaign. “It’s showing up in the polls, it’s showing up in focus groups.”

It was also showing up in morgues, hospitals and bankruptcy filings, but a man’s got to have priorities.

After so much downplaying of so much destruction, last week’s general distress felt jarring.

“They’re blathering, people from the Vice President on down, saying these riots are not ‘who we are’,” Mark Steyn told Fox News.

“Have you switched on a TV since Memorial Day? This is exactly who we are.

“It’s OK to loot Macy’s, it’s OK to incinerate the precinct house in Minneapolis … but suddenly you expect the Capitol of the United States to be immune from this?”

Good call, as distinct from the ­bizarre post-riot comment from America’s Captain Healing, Joe Biden.

US President-elect Joe Biden took his turn as America’s Captain Healing. Picture: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

“No one can tell me that if it had been a group of Black Lives Matter protesting yesterday, they wouldn’t have been treated very, very differently than the mob of thugs that stormed the Capitol,” Biden said.

“We all know that’s true, and it is unacceptable. Totally unacceptable.”

So old Joe would’ve been happier with more dead people, then. The fatal shooting of just one woman by Capitol Building guards was “totally unacceptable”, apparently.

As well, according to Biden’s logic, those guards are racist. Why, reckless comments like that are almost enough to get a fellow banned by Twitter.

Incidentally, there have been four major uprisings in perpetually riotous Portland, Oregon since New Year’s Eve. The besieged city is now referred to as “a riot with a zip code”.

But you probably haven’t read anything about those. The rioters are opposed to Donald Trump, and are therefore invisible.