NBC News’ Michael Beschloss Wants Capitol Riot Day to Be Memorialized Like 9/11

Both on MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” and on Twitter, Beschloss made the case for memorializing the deadly riot by MAGA supporters with the same solemnity as 9/11

NBC News presidential historian Michael Beschloss said Tuesday he wants to see the deadly riots at the Capitol on Jan. 6 memorialized with the seriousness and solemnity as the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

He made the case in two places: During an appearance on MSNBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” and on Twitter.

“Conceivably, this could have taken away our democracy and this is one reason why I think we have to observe the 6th of January every single year as a time that we had a very close call to remind us that we have to be eternally vigilant because democracy is fragile,” he told Maddow, mentioning how “close” the rioters were, in his opinion, to “assassinations and/or hostage-taking.”

On Twitter, he restated his points. “January 6 should be an annual day of national remembrance from now on. Americans should never forget exactly how close our democracy came to being fractured and how zealously we must always work to protect it,” he wrote.

Beschloss went on, “On both September 11, 2001, and January 6, 2021, terrorist haters of democracy tried to attack our Capitol and Congress. But on January 6, they actually managed to invade the building and put our leaders and our democracy in danger. We had a close call and must never forget.”

The discussion played out on MSNBC as Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died on January 6 while defending the Capitol from supporters of President Donald Trump who overtook the building in an attempt to stop the certification of President Joe Biden’s win, was honored in the rotunda of the Capitol.

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