My standard for incitement is this: The inciting actions must themselves be improper or blameworthy; the inciting actions must have demonstrably caused the violence; the violence must have been a foreseeable consequence of the inciting actions.
Sure enough, Trump, through his destructive, self-serving, and dishonest efforts to overturn his election loss, inspired the attack on the Capitol, and such an attack was a foreseeable consequence of Trump’s actions.
The House’s case is sprawling and complex, so it’s probably best to focus on one specific aspect. For me, the clearest case involves Trump’s former vice president.
Trump’s improper, cruel, and reckless attacks on Mike Pence before and during the Capitol riots predictably helped inspire rioters to storm the Capitol, seeking to abduct, harm, or even murder Pence.
