Wall Street Journal Editorial Board Declares ‘Democracy Isn’t Dying,’ Argues Institutions Held Against Jan. 6 Attack

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The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) editorial board bucked the prominent narrative in the American media that U.S. democracy is flailing in its latest editorial.

The editorial, published on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, argued that U.S. institutions successfully fended off the attack on American democracy that day and since.

“There apparently was a “war room” of motley characters at the Willard hotel and small groups of plotters who wanted to storm the barricades. But they were too disorganized to do much more than incite what became the mob that breached the Capitol,” the piece begins — clearly linking Trump officials and lawyers at the Willard hotel to the attack on the Capitol.

The editorial continues by arguing that the rioters “didn’t come close to overturning the election” and that many of them, 31 so far, are going to prison while others will pay a heavy price for their actions.

The WSJ singled out former Vice President Mike Pence for praise for his actions on Jan. 6, writing, “The true man at the margin was Mike Pence.” Adding that Pence “stood up to Mr. Trump’s threats for the good of the country and perhaps at the cost of his political future.”

On the other hand, the board noted that “8 Senators and 139 House Republicans voted against certifying the electoral votes in some states,” but noted this was nowhere near a majority.

The editorial goes on to praise GOP officials at the local level that certified Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential win, despite pressure and threats from Donald Trump. And notes that the courts, too, did their job in upholding the election results.

The WSJ, a paper owned by Rupert Murdoch’s Newscorp, also took Trump to task directly:

None of this absolves Mr. Trump for his behavior. He isn’t the first candidate to question an election result; Hillary Clinton still thinks Vladimir Putin defeated her in 2016. But he was wrong to give his supporters false hope that Congress and Mr. Pence could overturn the electoral vote. He did not directly incite violence, but he did incite them to march on the Capitol.

Worse, he failed to act to stop the riot even as he watched on TV from the White House. He failed to act despite the pleading of family and allies. This was a monumental failure of character and duty. Republicans have gone mute on this dereliction as they try to stay united for the midterms. But they will face a reckoning on this with voters if Mr. Trump runs in 2024.

The article ends by noting, “None of this leaves much cause for optimism—but then we survived Jan. 6, as well as more than a few bad Presidents. Keep your eye on the Constitution’s enduring principles and institutions, and who sustains or tears them down. That’s where self-government will live or die.”

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