By Warren Bumgarner

Wednesday, Jan. 6, is a day that shocked, saddened and angered the nation as we watched the insurrection in Washington on television.

We are asking ourselves how could this have happened to our Capitol building? How could these people have been so deluded as to believe they were doing the right thing? Those who breached the Capitol building seemed to be delighted with the mayhem they created. “This is our house, we belong here,” was chanted over and over. Having pondered this for several days, I have concluded that they behaved that way because they had drunk Donald Trump’s Tea for five or more years.

What is this tea you may ask? It’s a potent brew of lies, fabrications, conspiracy theories and hate-filled rhetoric that has spewed from Trump, Fox News, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and many more of their ilk without rebuttal or denunciation from any of us. We all are complicit in keeping our mouths shut when we should have stepped up and said something.

How could this happen? It happened exactly the same as Jim Jones built his People’s Temple in the 1970s. According to Wikipedia, Jones studied Stalin and Adolf Hitler. His aim was to build his cult and control every aspect of its membership. Another cultist, Father Devine, counseled Jones and told him to “find an enemy, and make sure that everyone knows who it is.” Jones chose society and racism of the 1960s and 1970s as his enemies, and he brainwashed and deluded his followers into following him to Guyana and leaving society behind.

On Nov. 18, 1978 Jones, knowing that his cult was about to be held accountable for the murders of U.S. Congressman Leo Ryan and four others, ordered all his cult members to mix cyanide with grape Flavor-Aid, and commit suicide. They were all so fearful and delusional that they followed Jones’ orders. A total of 918 cult members paid the ultimate price for following such an evil man.

During the years that Donald Trump has been a political character, he, too, has fed the fears and suspicions of his “base.” He has designated the media and Democrats as his enemies. He has parroted what he has heard on Fox News, listened to very dubious advisors and has finally arrived at a place where the country at large is crying “enough.” Trump has, like Jim Jones, established a cult that not only includes average citizens, but members of Congress that sought to curry his favor. They all drank the Trump Tea, and there will be a price to be paid for their conspiratorial sedition. Those who breeched the Capitol are being sought by the FBI and will be prosecuted for their lawlessness.

Sedition is defined as overt conduct such as speech and organization that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Raising objections to legally cast and counted votes is textbook sedition.

Those guilty of conspiratorial sedition from North Carolina include all of those who objected to the electoral votes of both Arizona and Pennsylvania:

• Rep. Dan Bishop (R)

• Rep. Ted Budd (R)

• Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R)

• Rep. Richard Hudson (R) and

• Rep. David Rouzer (R),

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R) only voted to overturn Pennsylvania.

These people knew that there was no fraud or vote machine tampering. Yet, they all raised baseless objections and attempted to overturn legally cast votes in these two states.

They all drank the Trump Tea.

Sen. Thom Tillis gets an honorable mention because he took a large swallow of the tea, but he spit his portion out after seeing what Trump and his tea had caused to happen at the Capitol.

All these people committed a crime against our nation and violated their oaths to preserve, protect and defend the constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic. If they want to see examples of domestic enemies, all they need do is look into a mirror.

The Trump Tea they all drank will not put an end to their lives, but it rightfully should kill all their careers in politics. They all deserve no less a punishment.

The “amnesia” of this event is already starting. Never forget what these people tried to do.

Warren Bumgarner lives in Mount Ulla.