This is how far this story has gotten.
Pa. GOP lawmaker Doug Mastriano says he left the Capitol area before the riot. New videos say otherwise.
Videos Contradict State Lawmaker’s Claim He Left Capitol While It Was ‘Still Peaceful’
New videos appear to show State Senator Doug Mastriano closer to Capitol insurrection than he said.
There's a old saying in politics that goes something like this:
It is an axiom of practical politics never to believe anything until it has been officially denied.
I'm not sure I can go with this with every official denial, but with it in mind, State Senator Doug Mastriano has kinda sorta denied the story (and quickly pivoted to the deplorable anti-Trumpers):
Contrary to the desperate claims of anonymous keyboard warriors, I followed the directions of the Capitol Police and respected all police lines as I came upon them. Even disingenuous internet sleuths know that police lines did shift throughout the course of the day. I followed those lines as they existed.
The Huffington Post and others are relying on angry partisans who are so blinded by their hatred for all things Donald Trump that they are distorting facts to manipulate public opinion. This is just further proof that their hatred of President Trump runs so deep that these unnamed people are willing to exploit the emotions and gullibility of their followers.
This obsession is part of their desperate attempt to divert attention away from what their “progressive” choices at the ballot box are doing to our country as we watch gas prices skyrocket, inflation increase, renewed fighting in the Middle East, and the continuation of the unrestrained humanitarian crisis at the southern border. They are the foot soldiers of the ruling elite and should be dismissed as such.
You'll note that only the first paragraph pertains to Mastriano's Kapitolwanderungen. The other two are ad hominem attacks on those who sifted through the endless videos to find his hat and scarf.
His last two paragraphs are irrelevant and should be dismissed as such.
The core of Mastriano's denial is that he respected the (shifting?) police lines as he found them. You'll note that Mastriano doesn't say who "shifted" the police lines. Or what, exactly "shifted" means.
And now we know why, from WHYY:
In one [video], he is visible standing on the Capitol lawn with his wife. In another, Mastriano appears poised to stroll past police barricades as rioters push past them.
Ah, the rioters shifted the lines. And Mastriano walked right on through.
And let's remember what he initially told The PGH City Paper:
My position on lawlessness is equally as clear. When it was apparent that this was no longer a peaceful protest, my wife and I left the area and made our way out of the area.
About four minutes and 30 seconds into the interview, Senator Mastriano remarks after leaving the speech and heading towards the West side of the Capitol, he approached a few police officers to ask where to go. The police officers directed him to the East side of the Capitol. According to a detailed timeline and analysis of the minute-by-minute actions of the rioters composed by the New York Times, the crowd at the Trump speech departed heading towards the West side of the Capitol around 12:17 pm. The rioters were already starting to gather there.
Senator Mastriano continues at the five-minute mark in the interview explaining the first signs of seeing “agitators” that were “kind of getting in the face of the police and jiggling the bicycle rack barricades they use.” According to the same New York Times timeline, the first barricades on the West side were breached at 12:53 pm as supporters surrounded the Capitol heading to the East side of the building. Senator Mastriano witnessed the first attempt to breach the Capitol on the West side of the building and still continued to the East side. [Emphasis added.]
So he witnessed the first breach but didn't immediately leave the area?
How many lies (subtle and otherwise) did he utter.
There are many serious questions that Pennsylvania State Senator Doug Mastriano needs to answer. Officially. Under oath.
Like, how close did he get personally to the treason of January 6?
