The latest Jan. 6 Committee hearing revealed the incestuous relationship between violent militias, extremists, and Trump’s inner circle—whose decision to march to the U.S. Capitol was deliberate, premeditated, and planned.
The committee showed a draft tweet in which Trump wrote, “I will be making a Big Speech at 10AM on January 6th at the Ellipse…please arrive early, massive crowds expected. March to the Capitol after. Stop the Steal!”
Even though the tweet wasn’t sent, Katrina Pierson, Trump’s former spokeswoman, emailed rally organizers that Trump was going to “call on everyone to march to the Capitol.”
That included Stephen Ayres, a witness at the hearing and die-hard MAGA supporter, who said, “We basically were just following what [Trump] said.”
Ayres was joined by thousands of MAGA patriots who were going to “take back” the country that was stolen from them by the “deep state.”
The MAGA brownshirts took Trump seriously, and literally
The Proud Boys took Trump literally and seriously.
They allegedly wrote a plan, entitled “1776 Returns,” which outlined their goal to forcibly take control of D.C.-area buildings to ensure their demands were met, which included Congress certifying that Donald Trump had been re-elected.
The night before the insurrection, the leader of the Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, met with Stewart Rhodes, leader of the Oath Keepers (which was described by its former spokesperson Jason Van Tatenhove as a “violent militia” that came to D.C. seeking an “armed revolution.”) Specifically, in two open letters published in December 2020, Rhodes asked Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act. He wrote “millions of American military and law enforcement veterans, and many millions more loyal patriotic American gun owners stand ready to answer your call to arms, and obey your orders to get this done.” Those willing to obey include Republican elected officials.
Even with Trump out of office, the GOP has shown it only cares about national security if it involves Muslims, Black people, and immigrants. Violent insurrections, mass shootings, and the rise of white power movements (the No. 1 domestic threat in America), barely rate on their list of concerns.
This time, the threat is domestic, homegrown, and increasingly normalized by the GOP and Trump.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/were-not-prepared-for-what-maga-brownshirts-will-do-in-2024