The Man Behind Saturday’s Pro-Trump Rally Once Praised a Far-Right Assassin
Braynard, as part of the coursework for an MFA he was pursuing at Columbia University, created a literary magazine called Otoya, which was billed as a “Literary Journal of the New Nationalism.” The publication, Braynard explained in a brief editor’s note, was titled in honor of Otoya Yamaguchi, whose name may not be familiar to people outside of Japan. In 1960, Yamaguchi, a 17-year-old right-wing ultranationalist in Japan, brutally murdered Inejirō Asanuma, a legislator and chairman of the Japan Socialist Party. Yamaguchi stabbed Asanuma with a samurai sword at a televised election debate. The image capturing the horrific moment became one of the most famous news photos of the 20th century. After being arrested, Yamaguchi committed suicide and became a hero of the Japanese far right.
And he’s a hero for Braynard, too. His note described this murderer as a courageous nationalist who valiantly killed a leftist.
Braynard shows there is no distance between pushing the Big Lie and whitewashing the recent history of January 6. Both endeavors are essential and intertwined parts of the Trump cult’s assault on democracy. Braynard said there will be high-profile speakers at the September event, including members of Congress. Maybe. Given his research work after the election—and his description of what occurred on January 6—it’s not clear his powers of observation can be trusted. But his current venture was granted the Bannon seal of approval, an important imprimatur in Trumpworld. And that’s just another sign the Trumpists will not give up their attempts to deny reality to serve their Dear Leader. In this crusade, Braynard is a loyal foot soldier.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/09/matt-braynard-january-6-rally-capitol-insurrection/