Less hysterical commentators on the Right concede that what took place that day was appalling. They argue that the evidence so far, however, suggests that the intentions of the rioters stopped well short of an insurrection, or even of domestic terrorism. This is no doubt true of the vast majority of those who gathered outside the Capitol to protest at what they saw as a "stolen" presidential election. Some undoubtedly arrived armed and a minority may have conspired to attack members of Congress. It was only when the inadequacies of the policing of the legislature became obvious  that some protesters attempted to force entry -- all too successfully, as it turned out. It was only by great good fortune that legislators escaped unhurt.

Does the fact that the invasion of the Capitol was probably opportunistic prove that this was no insurrection? Not necessarily. Some of the most famous revolutions in history were also opportunistic, from the storming of the Bastille that triggered the French Revolution in 1789 to the assault on the Winter Palace during the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. The same applies to failed coups d'état, such as the attempt by far-Right army officers to seize the Spanish parliament, known as "F-23" after its date, 23 February 1981. The Spanish putsch sought to take advantage of a temporary weakness of the newly democratic government, but was thwarted by King Juan Carlos, who went on TV to denounce the coup leaders. Even the most carefully planned seizure of power always requires two additional elements: opportunity and leadership.  

In the case of January 6, the role of the then President Trump is thus crucial. When he addressed some 10,000 protesters outside the White House and urged them to "fight like hell" and march on Congress, did he intend them to interrupt, delay or even prevent the constitutional procedure to confirm the result of the election? Even if that is not what the President intended, is that what the crowds understood him to be saying?

Many Trump loyalists seem to have believed that their leader was encouraging them to do just that. All that day, his Tweets had urged Republicans to "FIGHT". He repeatedly misled them about Mike Pence, his own Vice President, by claiming that his ceremonial Senate role entitled him to "decertify" Joe Biden's election. "If Vice President @Mike Pence comes through for us, we will win the Presidency." Later: "Do it, Mike, this is a time for extreme courage!" Around 2 pm, less than an hour after his incendiary speech, the Capitol was stormed and Pence was hustled out of the chamber by security. Trump was informed immediately. A few minutes later he tweeted: "Mike Pence didn't have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution...USA demands the truth!"  

There is still much we don't know about what went on in the White House that day, but from these public utterances it is clear that the then President was actively creating the conditions for a bid to stop the certification of an election he has to this day refused to recognise as legitimate. Trump was demanding that his Vice President act ultra vires and, when it became clear that Pence would not do so, the man who was still Commander in Chief denounced his deputy. He then waited for a crucial quarter of an hour while an armed mob rampaged through the building, searching for politicians, before belatedly telling rioters to support the Capitol police.

Was this simply a protest that got out of hand, or was POTUS deliberately deploying " people power" in order to hang on to office? During his impeachment trial, much was made by his lawyers of one tweet: "Stay peaceful!" But this message came only some 38 minutes after the defences had been breached, by which time the police and FBI had regained control and the interlopers were mostly under arrest. All the damage was done while those inside and outside the Capitol apparently still believed they had the authority of the President for what they were doing.

Trump seems to have been extremely well informed, minute by minute, of what was happening at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue. If he is culpable, it is not merely for what he said and did, but also for what he did not say or do. It was left to others, including the acting Defense Secretary and Pence himself, to authorise the deployment of the National Guard -- something that should have happened much earlier. It had indeed been ordered by Trump himself the previous summer, in response to a Black Lives Matter demonstration that was, by comparison, quite peaceful. The fact that POTUS refused to take emergency measures to protect the US Congress speaks volumes.