# January 6th Hearing-Adjacent Discussion Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 12, 2022, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829 "2022-07-12T16:20:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/21 "2022-07-12T22:25:15Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > He said, “She – ummm, or he – …” It seemed obvious that he had an idea who it was and caught himself before irrevocably identified the witness as female. Well, that does narrow down the possibilities to about half the U. S. population. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/22 "2022-07-12T22:25:35Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > Has it been established that there were militia guys already at the Capitol, ready to go, before trump even told the crowd to march? IIRC that was in the very first hearing (the Capitol Police officer and the documentary filmmaker). There was footage of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys heading to the Capitol to find the weak points in the security before Trump’s rally ever even started. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/23 "2022-07-12T22:27:30Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Well, that does narrow down the possibilities to about half the U. S. population. 🙂 If it was meaningful at all – and I’m the first to admit it may not be! I’m having a hard time coming up with names of other people who fit @JohnT’s criteria. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/24 "2022-07-12T22:34:04Z")
I think this will fit here. While we know that Qannon is just beyond ridiculous, wasn’t there speculation that it was meant to be a joke to start with? A way to make fun of the CT people? And then it took off. I sort of think it was started by a couple of stoned college kids as a way to get ROTFL. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/25 "2022-07-12T22:37:03Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > He said, “She – ummm, or he – …” It seemed obvious that he had an idea who it was and caught himself before irrevocably identified the witness as female. Realistically, the only big reason to keep the witness secret would be to hide them from Trump. But given that we’re talking about Trump trying to contact the witness and that we can reasonably assume that he got a call from the DOJ and/or his lawyer telling him to refrain from calling that person ever again, I don’t think that’s really a concern. The secret isn’t a big secret from a criminal justice standpoint. So I think that would say that the goal of secrecy is to help build suspense for the next hearing. Given that I’m expecting the mystery witness to be “White House Aide Z” and not “Ivanka Trump”, I’m not feeling like the suspense is going to have the sort of payoff worth getting invested in. Their testimony might be amazing but their identity is probably not going to be helpful to any of us, beforehand. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/26 "2022-07-12T22:42:49Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > Realistically, the only big reason to keep the witness secret would be to hide them from Trump. or his followers. As the witnesses today described, Trump’s followers be _psycho_. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/27 "2022-07-12T22:49:01Z")
True, I was discounting that thinking that you’re going to have to deal with threats and craziness eventually - if you’re testifying - so there’s not much difference if that starts now or later. But I guess for a witness who’s just on the edge of testifying, it’s to the prosecutor’s advantage to minimize the chance that they flake out before going on the witness stand. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/28 "2022-07-12T22:51:46Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Pertaining to the mystery person to be heard at the next hearing who was the target of Trump’s (alleged) witness tampering efforts: > > … > Hey! Maybe it’s Mike Lindell! 😉 Maybe it’s Mike Pence. Trump calling Pence, trying to influence him, and Pence refusing is Jan 6th in microcosm. And I think Pence is certainly an important witness that the Select Committee should call. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/29 "2022-07-12T22:56:08Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > While we know that Qannon is just beyond ridiculous, wasn’t there speculation that it was meant to be a joke to start with? A way to make fun of the CT people? That isn’t the sense I got from the HBO documentary series “Q: Into The Storm.” As best I could follow, nobody knows anything about the original QAnon. Speculation is that maybe it was Steve Bannon, or Michael Flynn. In any case, that original guy is long gone. He started off popping up in a couple different online forums. One of them was 4Chan, and then pretty soon “his” posts on 4Chan started sounding like a different writer and declaring that that would be his permanent home online. Other admins on other (wacko) sites were certain someone else took over the account. That someone else ends up being Ron Watkins, the 4Chan admin from the group “Q” was posting to. He proceeds to troll the world with a Napolean Dynamite kind of energy posting as Q for the next few years. I’m unclear on much of these details, but then just like Robert Durst, at the end of the documentary he accidentally admits it. So it may have been the exact opposite of your memory: It may have started with a true believer, but was quickly commandeered by an edgelord for the lols. EDIT: You also might be conflating QAnon with the “birds aren’t real” guy. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/30 "2022-07-12T22:57:31Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > And I think Pence is certainly an important witness that the Select Committee should call. Has the Committee subpoenaed Pence, though? Has he been interviewed? I think Pence has “spoken” through his close advisors, but not Pence himself. The most recent information I can find says the Committee _might_ subpoena him, but nothing that says they have. Pretty sure he won’t come forward without a subpoena, and even Pence wouldn’t appear publicly without being interviewed in private first. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/31 "2022-07-12T23:00:54Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > So it may have been the exact opposite of your memory: It may have started with a true believer, but was quickly commandeered by an edgelord for the lols. Thanks. I have to follow rabbit holes on the net for work. But I stay far, far away from this stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/32 "2022-07-12T23:23:18Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Has the Committee subpoenaed Pence, though? Wouldn’t he need permission from Mother? ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2022, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/33 "2022-07-12T23:23:30Z")
> **[Jan. 6 committee setting its sights on Pence, Ginni Thomas](https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-us-supreme-court-donald-trump-clarence-thomas-subpoenas-9b2409c95f569ef21acea63b9a3daeb4)** > > WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of the House committee investigating the Capitol riot said Sunday they may subpoena former Vice President Mike Pence and are waiting to hear from Virginia “Ginni” Thomas , the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas,... So, they are “setting their sights” on Pence and “Waiting to hear” from Ginni Thomas. Hey, maybe the witness is Ginni Thomas. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/34 "2022-07-13T00:32:46Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Wouldn’t he need permission from Mother? Only if a straight woman questions him. Ba-da-_bing_ 🥁 ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/35 "2022-07-13T00:46:38Z")
> "Ambassador Bolton? I have the Hague on Line One." [https://t.co/Glcr2DhgX4](https://t.co/Glcr2DhgX4) > > — Charles P. Pierce (@CharlesPPierce) [July 12, 2022](https://twitter.com/CharlesPPierce/status/1546975464136261634?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) Did Bolton just admit on the air to war crimes? ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/36 "2022-07-13T01:00:56Z")
I can actually agree with Bolton’s analysis of Trump’s character - The Former Guy tries to half-ass everything he does - but his conclusion is simply wrong. A half-assed coup attempt is still a coup attempt. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/37 "2022-07-13T01:06:26Z")
Somebody needs to do a _Downfall_ of Trump’s meeting… ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/38 "2022-07-13T02:36:02Z")
Now _that’d_ be awesome! ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/39 "2022-07-13T03:18:43Z")
“You did what you felt right at the time and therefore it was right.” Katrine Pierson, White House ethicist. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2022, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829/40 "2022-07-13T07:13:52Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > That someone else ends up being Ron Watkins, the 4Chan admin from the group “Q” was posting to. Slight nitpick; it was 8kun (previously named 8chan), a similar but different web site and community. His dad Jim owns the site. Jim’s testimony was part of today’s hearing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/january-6th-hearing-adjacent-discussion-thread/967829.md?page=3)