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Capitol rioter breaks down crying in court — gets hit with 68-month prison sentence
February 01, 2023
A Marine Corps veteran who participated in the January 6 insurrection just received 68 months in prison — the longest sentence of anyone involved in the attack to date — shortly after giving a tearful speech to the judge trying to beg for leniency, according to POLITICO on Wednesday.
"Daniel Caldwell, a 51-year-old Marine Corps veteran, delivered a tearful apology in court to the officers he sprayed, expressing remorse for his actions that day and pleading with U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly for mercy," reported Kyle Cheney. "But Kollar-Kotelly repeatedly described Caldwell as an 'insurrectionist' and noted that his deployment of chemical spray at officers created such an intense cloud that it nearly broke the depleted police line by itself. Though no officers directly attributed their injuries that day to Caldwell’s actions, Kollar-Kotelly said his actions undoubtedly contributed to their physical and psychological trauma."
“You’re entitled to your political views but not to an insurrection,” said Kollar Kotelly as she handed down the sentence. “You were an insurrectionist.”
“I must face my actions head on,” said Caldwell tearfully, in his speech. “I hope that you and our country never have to face another day like January 6th.”
IN OTHER NEWS: Lead investigator blows the whistle on key finding Jan. 6 committee ignored in final report
Caldwell, a resident of The Colony, Texas, was caught on video using a chemical spray on more than a dozen police officers at the Capitol, making some violently sick and causing at least one to "vomit uncontrollably." "The air was so thick with chemicals that it wasn’t clear whether the officers he hit were injured by him directly or by a combination of factors," noted POLITICO.
Almost a thousand people have been charged, convicted, or accepted plea deals in connection with the January 6 attack — the largest-scale criminal prosecution ever to take place in U.S. history. The charges range from misdemeanor picketing and trespass to assault on police officers, as well as seditious conspiracy charges against ringleaders of the far-right groups the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.
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'Absurdity and vindictiveness': GOP ripped over their hypocritical treatment of Ilhan Omar
February 01, 2023
The newly Republican-controlled House of Representatives showed its power by quickly removing Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) from her committee assignments, because of her past controversial comments that were deemed antisemitic.
According to New York Magazine's Jonathan Chait, the GOP's sudden hard-line stance on antisemitic comments and behavior is shocking when it is compared to their previous stance of looking the other way when party superstar Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia) has made much more direct and derogatory antisemitic statements.
"The absurdity and vindictiveness of the Omar decision is thrown into the starkest relief when you consider it in conjunction with the treatment of Greene.Greene was immediately restored back to her committee privileges with the GOP control of the House," Chait wrote in an op-ed.
Omar's been attacked from the right mainly for a 2019 statement where she said that U.S. support of Israel is financially motivated, and drew heavy criticism from both political parties. The House of Representatives even specifically denounced Omar's comments in a formal resolution.
IN OTHER NEWS: ‘Homicidal maniac’: Sparks fly as GOP refuses to ban guns in House committee room
In direct contrast, Greene has made a series of highly publicized comments steeped in antisemitism without any reprimand from the Republic party.
Greene is a political colleague of known white nationalist Nick Fuentes, who has become a popular personality within some fringe GOP political circles. Greene also drew public ire when she compared COVID restrictions and the noting of vaccinated and non-vaccinated employees was similar to what Jewish people dealt with during the Holocaust. She initially apologized for her comments, but then withdrew her apology after pressure from the far-right.
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More bad news surfaced for Rep. George Santos (R-NY) on Wednesday, according to disabled U.S. Navy veteran Richard Osthoff. According to a Politico report, two FBI agents contacted him as part of the U.S. Attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York to ask about their conversations around a GoFundMe scheme.
Osthoff said that he turned over all of the text messages that the two exchanged and any other pertinent details.
The funds were coming as part of an effort to help the veteran whose service dog was ill and needed life-saving surgery. Despite raising the money, Santos then allegedly made off with the cash.
“I’m glad to get the ball rolling with the big-wigs,” Osthoff told Politico. “I was worried that what happened to me was too long ago to be prosecuted.”
IN OTHER NEWS: ‘Homicidal maniac’: Sparks fly as GOP refuses to ban guns in House committee room
It's the latest in a slew of Santos scandals, including a request sent by fellow New York Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY), who asked the Security and Exchange Commission to look into Santos' work with Harbor City Capital. He alleges that Santos was doing work that required him to be registered with the SEC as a broker.
“There’s no one that poses a greater threat in Congress than Santos. It’s undeniable that he’s broken the law. We have to protect Congress from George Santos, who threatens it from within,” Torres told Politico.
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