So what may be confusing is the term. The full term is coup d'état It specifically refers to the overthrow of a government. Trashing a single courthouse comes

So what may be confusing is the term. The full term is coup d'état It specifically refers to the overthrow of a government. Trashing a single courthouse comes nowhere close to that. The goal is power. Taking power from your political enemy and securing it for yourself. The word coup by itself has a broader definition, but is usually used as a compliment. Such as "Heather just closed a $30mm deal with Acme Corp. Her entire sales team scored a coup with that sales pitch" But when used in the context of gun-toting insurrectionists? "Coup" is shorthand for the full phrase. Coup d'état.