Congress had to draw the line somewhere. Former President Trump’s people could not be allowed to continue to display scorn without consequences. The law is the law. If it is not applied, it weakens. And those who flout it become examples for others.

Thus, we come to the well-known tragic events of January 6, when a mob invaded Congress to prevent the ratification of Joe Biden’s election as president of the country.

And it is fortunate that we did not mourn politicians among the victims of the mob, among them the then-vice president; shouts of “hang Pence” were heard in the halls of Congress that day.

We have not seen similar events in America, in the first Republic of the World, since its founding, if ever.

These are events that have shocked the American Republic. It created doubts internationally about the stability and effectiveness of its system of government and encouraged authoritarian leaders around the world, creating new political alliances opposed to democracy.

So, these occurrences could not be left unexamined – the causes need to be understood and the perpetrators behind them have to be identified. Congress, despite strong reactions from Republicans, appointed a committee to do so.

Among the witnesses called to testify and present evidence in their possession is Steven Bannon, a former aide to former President Trump. But he ignored the congressional subpoena. If there were no consequences for him, then the power of the legislative branch of the U.S. government would be in greater doubt.

Bannon’s example of defiance is being followed by other close associates of Trump, apparently at his suggestion.

After the most recent developments, it remains to be seen how many will continue to flout the decisions of Congress and how many will work with our elected representatives to find out what happened, and especially to take measures to prevent a recurrence.