On the 21st anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on America, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) invoked the January 6th Capitol riot.
Appearing on CBS News’s “Face the Nation” Sunday, Warner compared the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, in which nearly 3,000 Americans died, to the Capitol riot on January 6th, 2021. He said the nation needs to recapture the “unity of spirit” felt on 9/11 to counter “election deniers” and January 6.
“I remember as most Americans do where they were on 9/11,” said Warner. “I was in it is middle of a political campaign and suddenly the differences with my opponent seemed very small in comparison. And our country came together… The stunning thing to me is, here we are 20 years later and the attack on the symbol of our democracy was not coming from terrorists but it came from literally insurgents attacking the Capitol on January 6th. So, I believe we are stronger… But I do worry about some of the activity in this country where the election deniers, the insurgency that took place on January 6th. That is something I hope we can see that same kind of unity of spirit.”
“I think the threat of terror has diminished,” Sen. Mark Warner says, reflecting on where the country is now 21 years after the attacks of 9/11.
“I do worry about some of the activity in this country where the election deniers, the insurgency that took place on January 6th.” pic.twitter.com/2v9OVEhbko
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) September 11, 2022
Warner was among the most high-profile Democrats to compare January 6th and September 11th, but he was not alone.
“Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd opened the program on Sunday by placing the two events together. “Today is September 11th,” Todd said. “It was 21 years ago we were attacked by foreign terrorists. Not quite 20 years after 9/11, the Capitol came under attack from domestic terrorists.”
Warner’s comments also followed several left-wing Twitter users also made such comparisons.
“21 years since terror attacks of 9/11. Then the terror attack of 1/6,” PoliticsUSA editor-in-chief Sarah Reese Jones wrote on Twitter. “Defending this country from attacks foreign and domestic should never be divisive.”
“September 11 was a terrorist attack. January 6 was a terrorist attack,” Lawyer and commentator for CNN and MSNBC, Tristan Snell, added.
“I will always remember how angry and sad I felt the day our country was attacked,” Georgia state Representative Erick Allen (D) tweeted. “The lives lost and the families impacted demand we continue to hold those who attack our democracy accountable. This is true for 9/11/2001 just as it is for 1/6/2021. #NeverForget“