After almost a year of the Capitol Hill violence which took place on January 6, Americans now believe that democracy in their country is still under severe stress.
As per a poll published by news corporation CBS, over two-thirds of Americans believe that American democratic values and system is under threat and the Capitol Hill invasion by supporters of ex-President Donald trump was an ominous indication in terms of political violence in the country.
The same poll suggests that a worrying 28 percent respondents believe violence against the government can be justified for the defence of election results. In another poll conducted by The Washington Post/University of Maryland, over 34 percent of the respondents believe violence to defend election results is justifiable. The poll also reported that the percentage of Americans being proud of their nationality has dropped from 90 percent in 2002 to 54 percent in 2021.
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The Post survey further reveals that among the Trump supporters, two-thirds of them still believe that Joe Biden’s presidency is not legitimate. Around 83 percent of Trump supporters place his responsibility in the attacks at “none” or “some”. And, overall 26 percent of Americans believe he should run again for Presidency in 2024. About sixty percent of overall respondents believe that Trump is responsible to mobilise supporters to protest the election result.
A select committee of the House of Representatives has been formed to investigate individuals who organised the protests. As per media report, the committee has conducted over 300 interviews and several documents. Only two Republicans are part of the committee. One of them, Liz Cheney, criticised Trump’s inaction in controlling the violence. “He failed to do so (asking the rioters to recede). It's hard to imagine a more significant and more serious dereliction of duty,” lamented Cheney.
