that the optics would be so so so so bad for anyone on the other side of the aisle - it would look like a blatantly obvious, undeniable coup to the country and world, would stoke unrest in the most dramatic way possible, etc. But with the troop buildup around the area, my imagination was definitely sparked. And I don’t know how to explain that. Maybe it’s a case of ‘create fear to force the enemy to react.’ I don’t have an answer but just to say that.

Since I can’t resist speculating, the ‘come to DC’ —>’Trump supporters are violent and scary’ —> we need military logic still did accomplish a goal of seeming to justify a military presence in DC. You had to have troop buildup around the Capitol, because the narrative was that they were there to protect Eric Swalwell from scary whites. But the ultimate purpose was to make military in DC seem to have a justification, rather than just showing up at random.