The text of the official proceeding statute that was used to prosecute some of the January 6 rioters pretty clearly supports the government’s position. Several of our reactionary Supreme Court justices claim to be textualists. And yet, it appears that the Court is likely to let the defendants off the hook based on concerns that the statute could be used to penalize legitimate political activities protected by the First Amendment.
The concerns are reasonable, and in the hands of other jurists, they are defensible. But for someone who claims to be a fundamentalist on the plain meaning of statutes–just read the words and let the chips fall where they may regardless of policy implications–they look like hypocrisy motivated by partisan politics.