January 13, 2022
ALWAYS AND ONLY THE TRUMPISTS:
Oath Keepers leader indicted on charges related to Jan. 6 (Oriana Gonzalez, 1/13/22, axios)
The indictment alleges that following the 2020 presidential election, Rhodes "conspired with his co-defendants and others to oppose by force the execution of the laws governing the transfer of presidential power by Jan. 20, 2021."Details: Rhodes and co-conspirators allegedly began communicating via encrypted apps in December 2020, when they planned to travel to Washington, D.C. "on or around Jan. 6, 2021," per the DOJ. They made plans to bring weapons to the area to support the operation.Rhodes during the riot went to the restricted area of Capitol Grounds and told his followers to meet him at the Capitol.Oath Keeper members and other affiliates then marched "in a 'stack' formation," joined the mob and made their way into the Capitol. Another group then joined in the same formation.Other groups were stationed outside the city in "quick reaction force" teams prepared to quickly bring guns and other weapons into D.C. to support operations to stop the presidential transition of power, per the indictment.
"Seditious Conspiracy" Charges Against Oath Keepers Mark a Major Advance in January 6 Investigation (DAN FRIEDMAN & MARK FOLLMANJan. 26th, 2022, Mother Jones)
In court documents made public Thursday, prosecutors alleged that Rhodes spent large sums on weapons in the days before January 6, including $10,000 on an AR-15 and $17,000 on other military equipment. Rhodes further purchased and shipped tactical gear and a weapon sight to an unnamed individual in Virginia, near DC, just before January 6, according to the indictment. Rhodes allegedly helped to organize a so-called quick reaction force in a northern Virginia hotel room, a conspiracy previously alleged by the DOJ to involve numerous Oath Keepers who stashed weapons there that they brought to the DC area just ahead of January 6. Rhodes has said the Oath Keepers anticipated using the weapons inside DC if Trump declared a national emergency and called on Oath Keepers and other militia groups to help him keep order.The indictment also includes new details from a "Leadership Intel Chat" allegedly convened by Rhodes just after the November 2020 election. "We aren't getting through this without a civil war," he told the group of Oath Keepers, according to the indictment. "Too late for that. Prepare your mind, body, spirit."The indictment contains further stark evidence from alleged communications among Rhodes and fellow Oath Keepers in the run-up to January 6, with Rhodes anticipating "a bloody and desperate fight" if Biden became president. Further planning by Oath Keepers in those talks allegedly included holding a training session to focus on "convoy operations" and "setting up hasty ambushes."
Posted by Orrin Judd at January 13, 2022 4:50 PM