Yesterday Karen wrote about the scene that took place outside DNC Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday night. In case you missed it, here’s what it looked like.

BREAKING

Absolute mayhem outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington DC.

Ceasefire advocates who were protesting and blocking the doors of the DNC building are being pulled off, thrown down, and arrested by law enforcement. pic.twitter.com/uCEsYGQt8L

— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) November 16, 2023

There were a bunch of conflicting reports about this wish several people including at least one member of  congress claiming protesters pepper sprayed police. But reporter Dave Weigel was there and claimed that no protesters had used pepper spray but police definitely used pepper spray on some protesters. There’s video of that happening so we know that much is true. But the statement released by the police also claimed police had been pepper sprayed and that 6 officers were injured.

The general scene reminded some of the 1968 Democratic Convention which took place in Chicago. The fact that next year’s DNC Convention will also take place in Chicago is probably one reason some observers are feeling a bit nervous.

Wednesday’s flare-up in Washington, in which six police officers were injured and several lawmakers had to be evacuated from DNC headquarters, has raised concerns that the increasingly heated divide over the Israel-Gaza conflict could bring violent protests to Chicago.

“We have to anticipate that there’s a lot of tension and very passionate positions,” said chief of staff to the mayor Rich Guidice, who is helping direct logistics for the 2024 convention. “There’s ongoing training already taking place, specifically in de-escalation training.”…

“We’re used to these big events. We handle big demonstrations with negotiation and respect and make sure people stay nonviolent and peaceful,” said a person within Chicago law enforcement who did not have the authority to speak on the record. “We want to make sure people are able to exercise their First Amendment rights. That’s a top concern.”

But if laws are broken, “we respond accordingly.”

Next summer is a long way away and I’m not a fan of making predictions, but I do think it’s at least possible the convention could turn into a mess and here’s why. Recent polls show a majority of Democrats support the demand for an Israeli ceasefire. I’m not sure it has dawned on all of those Democrats that Israel may not do what they want in these circumstances, but put that aside for a moment. The leadership of the Democratic Party, people like Biden, Chuck Schumer, etc. are much more favorable to Israel’s point of view, at least so far. And that does seem to set up the kind of even we saw this week where protesters turn their anger on the party itself.

But again, next summer is a long way away. The Israeli operation in Gaza will probably last several more weeks, maybe even through the end of the year, but it won’t be still going on next August. If it is, then yes, expect riots in Chicago. But I suspect by then things will have settled into some kind of new normal.

But you never know. I saw someone on X asking a hypothetical question that went like this: If Israel declares a ceasefire and Hamas violates it with rocket or other attacks, what will be the next step then? Because I think we all know Hamas is going to violate whatever ceasefire eventually takes place. That’s why Hamas exists. So it’s not impossible we could have a ceasefire in the winter followed by a few months of calm and then another Hamas attack next summer and we’re right back to where we are now. This is why I don’t make predictions. There are just too many variables with a situation like this. By next summer why might be having riots over a completely different topic no one is really focused on right now.