London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Mar 28, 2026

'They're not very good at revolution': Rick Wilson says Trump mob's incompetence accidentally saved democracy

'They're not very good at revolution': Rick Wilson says Trump mob's incompetence accidentally saved democracy

Rick Wilson tore apart President Donald Trump for encouraging an angry mob to take over the U.S. Capitol -- and bashed Capitol police for letting the "redneck Visigoths" into the building.
The Lincoln Project co-founder and former Republican strategist has been studying Trump and his cult for years, but Wilson admitted in a new Daily Beast column that the violent mob ransacking the halls of Congress shocked even a jaded observer such as himself.

"As an anthropologist of the shittiest human being on the planet, a scholar of all Trump's pathologies, a plumber in the vast deeps of his f*ckwit necromancy, I should be past shock, but even I was appalled by not only the order to march on the Capitol spitting from his blubbery lips but by the organized teams of rioters who then invaded the House and Senate," Wilson writes.

He was infuriated by video showing Capitol police appearing to open gates and doors for the unruly mob, and pose for selfies with them inside the building, but he said the sad and violent spectacle was the nadir of the Trump presidency.

"Once the Trump forces were in the building, the damage was done," Wilson writes. "Deaths, injuries, and chaos followed, with the seat of our national legislative branch reduced to just another set in Trump's destructive reality television show. Driven by a combination of conspiracy fantasies, Trump berserkergang, and hatred of the two parties, the MAGA mob played the role we've seen in a hundred coups and collapses in the Third World: the invading rebels seizing the airfield, the radio station, the Palace of Justice, the Capitol building."

The anger Trump has fueled is so incoherent and stochastic that the mob had no idea what to do once they took over the Capitol, and was instead just another display of their cult-like devotion to the defeated president.

"The invasion and seizure of the Capitol was a perfect extension of the nihilist trolling operation that's replaced the Republican Party," Wilson writes. "They weren't there to hold the territory. They weren't there to find evidence of fraud, or force reluctant legislators to listen to their catalog of grievances; they were there for the lulz. They were there because Trump sent them."

That lack of focus, in the end, is what saved the republic long enough to certify Joe Biden's election win.

"These are not patriots; they're anarchists," Wilson writes. "They're insurrectionists, not conservatives. They are shock troops from America's Saddam. Organized in a thousand Facebook groups and with a million bad ideas transmitted to their brains from Fox, OAN, Newsmax, and QAnon, we're fortunate as a nation in only one respect—they're not very good at revolution."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Fresh Claims Emerge Over Harry and Meghan’s Australia Visit as Insider Speaks Out
NATO Assessment Indicates UK Defence Spending Has Fallen Below Alliance Average
FTSE 100 Slips as Middle East Tensions Weigh on Investor Sentiment
UK Economy Begins to Feel Early Impact of Iran Conflict as Policy Challenges Intensify
Russian National Jailed in UK After Assault Case Linked to Barron Trump’s Alert
Energy Price Surge Accelerates Shift Away from Fossil Fuels in UK Homes
UK Museums House More Than 260,000 Human Remains, New Report Reveals
Surging UK Gilt Yields Reflect Inflation Pressures and Fiscal Uncertainty
UK Issues Updated Guidance on Children’s Screen Time with Focus on Balance and Wellbeing
UK Migration Figures Show Shifting Trends Across Asylum, Visas and Channel Crossings
UK Watchdog Launches Probe into Five Firms Over Alleged Fake Reviews and Ratings
Jaguar Land Rover Halts Production at UK Plant Amid Supplier Disruption
UK Police Reverse Position, Confirm Arrests Will Resume for Palestine Action Protests
UK Small Businesses Face Europe’s Steepest Cost Pressures, New Survey Reveals
US Envoy Urges UK to Proceed with King’s Visit Amid Diplomatic Sensitivities
FTSE 100 Drops Over One Percent as Middle East Tensions Weigh on Markets
UK CO2 Plant Set to Reopen as Authorities Move to Safeguard Supplies Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Urges Stronger Defence Investment as He Questions Allied Naval Capabilities
New COVID Variant Detected in UK Raises Concerns Over Vaccine Effectiveness
FTSE Russell Moves to Standardise Free-Float Rules for UK and International Listings
HBO Max Launches in UK and Ireland, Marking Major Step in Global Streaming Expansion
UK Signals Readiness to Seize Russian ‘Shadow Fleet’ Vessels in Escalation of Sanctions Enforcement
Escalating Middle East Conflict Seen as Major Threat to UK Economic Stability
Early Challenges Mark Prince Harry and Meghan’s Australia Visit
UK Government Rejects Cover-Up Claims After Theft of Former PM Aide’s Phone
Cyprus Opens Strategic Talks with UK Over Sovereign Base Areas
UK Faces Risk of Sharp Inflation Surge Despite Stable Pre-Crisis Figures
UK Police Arrest Two Over Suspected Antisemitic Arson as Iran Link Investigated
UK Inflation Holds at Three Percent Ahead of Oil Price Shock from Iran Conflict
UK Fuel Prices Face Upward Pressure as Global Oil Trends Raise Cost Outlook
Girlguiding UK Sets September Deadline for Membership Policy Change Affecting Trans Participants
Germany and UK Accelerate Wind Power Expansion to Strengthen Energy Security
UK Moves to Ban Cryptocurrency Donations to Political Parties Over Foreign Influence Concerns
UK and Turkey Finalise Major Air Defence Agreement Worth Billions
Apple Introduces Mandatory Age Verification for iPhone Users in the UK
Diverging Views Emerge Over Meghan Markle’s Planned Australia Appearance
Trump Signals Frustration with UK Leadership Amid Diverging Approaches to Iran Conflict
UK Government Takes Control of Hunterston B as Landmark Nuclear Decommissioning Begins
UK Public Inflation Expectations Jump Sharply in March, Raising Pressure on Bank of England
UK Ministers Warn Expanded North Sea Drilling Would Deepen Exposure to Global Energy Volatility
Delayed UK Defence Investment Plan Leaves Suppliers Under Severe Financial Strain
Can Iran Strike the UK? Assessing the Real Military Threat as Conflict Escalates
Sanctioned Iranian Banker Linked to Luxury Marbella Villa Through UK Corporate Structure
Casey Bloys Navigates HBO Max UK Launch, Paramount Integration and Industry Buzz Over Netflix Meeting
Iran Conflict Sparks Sharp Turbulence in UK Mortgage Market, Reaching Pandemic-Era Disruption Levels
Major Donor Urges University of Kentucky to Reconsider Mitch Barnhart’s Post-Retirement Role
United Kingdom Moves to Lead International Effort to Reopen Strait of Hormuz
UK Police Investigate Targeted Attack on Jewish Ambulance Vehicles
UK Police Investigate Targeted Attack on Jewish Ambulance Vehicles
Senior UK Advocate Criticises Barnhart Retirement Appointment, Calls for Reconsideration
×