According to a report from the New York Times, some attendees at the Jan 6th insurrection who have not been indicted admit they are not ashamed of their actions after the Capitol was stormed and lawmakers fled for their lives, but are instead inspired by the day's events and plan to remain active, still believing the 2020 presidential election was stolen.
In interviews with several participants who are not under investigation, the Times' Elisabeth Dias and Jack Healy spoke with one attorney who was there on Jan 6th who claimed that his participation is a "badge of honor" and that it has led to a change in his career path that he is pleased with.
"There were moments when Paul Davis questioned his decision to join the crowd that marched on the United States Capitol last January. When he was publicly identified and fired from his job as a lawyer," the Times report states. "But then something shifted. Instead of lingering as an indelible stain, Jan. 6 became a galvanizing new beginning for Mr. Davis."
Explaining that he has made new contacts within conservative circles in his hometown of Frisco, Texas, Davis stated, "It definitely activated me more,” before adding, "It gave me street cred."
With the report stating, "The post-mortems and prosecutions that followed that infamous day have focused largely on the violent core of the mob. But a larger group has received far less attention: the thousands who traveled to Washington at the behest of Mr. Trump to protest the results of a democratic election, the vast majority of whom did not set foot in the Capitol and have not been charged with any crime — who simply went home," one participant admitted he did have one regret.
Oren Orr, 32, of Robbinsville, North Carolina, rented a car to drive to the "Stop the Steal" rally, marched on the Capitol, admitted he brought a baton and a taser with him that he never used and claims he was there to pray.
Speaking with the Times, Orr stated, "Most everybody thinks we ought to have went with guns, and I kind of agree with that myself. I think we ought to have went armed, and took it back. That is what I believe.”
"The ralliers were largely white, conservative men and women who have formed the bedrock of the Trump movement since 2016. Some describe themselves as self-styled patriots, some openly carrying rifles and handguns. Many invoke the name of Jesus and say they believe they are fighting a holy war to preserve a Christian nation," the Times reports. "The people who went to Washington for Jan. 6 are in some ways an isolated cohort. But they are also part of a larger segment of the public that may distance itself from the day’s violence but share some of its beliefs. A question now is the extent to which they represent a greater movement."
According to Robert Pape, the director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats at the University of Chicago, the 47 million who believe the election was stolen remain a looming threat.
“They are combustible material, like an amount of dry brushwood that could be set off during wildfire season by a lightning strike or by a spark,” he warned.
Julie McKechnie Fisher, who was at the Capitol and now works with the far-right Look Ahead America, explained that their fight is not over.
“We just can’t become complacent,” she remarked. “I can’t see anything good that this administration has done for us, and it doesn’t feel like he loves our country.”
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