Stochastic Terrorism

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Trump sends provocative ‘who shot Ashli Babbitt?’ email after conservative report ties officer who killed rioter to Pence: Trump statement may have been inspired by a The Spectator magazine accusing Mike Pence’s security team
by Nathan Place
UK Independent
July 2, 2021

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Former president Donald Trump has come under fire for a brief but provocative email asking for the identity of the Capitol police officer who shot and killed a rioter during the 6 January insurrection.

Mr Trump sent an email to supporters on Thursday with just four words: “Who shot Ashli Babbitt?”

Ms Babbitt, a military veteran who took part in the Capitol riot while Congress was certifying President Joe Biden’s electoral victory, was killed as a group of rioters closed in on the House chamber. She has become a cause célèbre among conservatives who have attempted to paint her as a patriotic martyr.

In reality, the Capitol Police officer who shot Mr Babbitt has been identified by federal prosecutors and cleared of wrongdoing. Lawyers for the officer chose not to reveal his name because he has faced death threats.

Mr Trump may have been inspired by the conservative British magazine The Spectator, which reported earlier this week that the officer who shot Ms Babbitt may have been someone on former Vice President Mike Pence’s security team.

“Sources close to and within the intelligence community tell [the reporter] that Babbitt was actually shot by a member of then-vice president Mike Pence’s protective detail,” the publication alleged.

Who killed Ashli Babbitt? A new theory emerges
by Cockburn (Mischief, mayhem and Washington gossip. Send tips to cockburn@spectator.us)
June 30, 2021 | 4:09 pm

Who shot Ashli Babbitt, the pro-Trump Air Force veteran who was killed by police during the January 6 riot at the US Capitol building? The American people were told that it was a Capitol Police officer who fired the fatal shot. But Cockburn has stumbled across some information that points to a different explanation.

Sources close to and within the intelligence community tell Cockburn that Babbitt was actually shot by a member of then-vice president Mike Pence’s protective detail. The VP’s detail, of course, is provided by US Secret Service, not the Capitol Police. One person asserted to Cockburn over drinks in DC that this is ‘basically an open secret’ in the intelligence community.

Law enforcement sources suggested to Cockburn that the Capitol Police Department and Department of Justice have publicly identified the shooter as a Capitol Police officer in order to protect the reputation of the Secret Service. Cockburn also wonders if this isn’t an attempt to protect Pence from further anger or threats from Capitol rioters who wanted him to refuse to certify the results of the election on January 6.

A cover-up of this nature would also explain why the government hasn’t been forthcoming with other information about the alleged Capitol Police officer who they say shot Babbitt. Police officers who are involved in shootings are almost always identified publicly. The unnamed officer’s lawyer says that his client is being kept anonymous due to threats against his life. Babbitt’s family, however, argues that they have a right to know who shot and killed their beloved relative. Her husband, Aaron Babbitt, is suing Washington DC for access to records that would supposedly reveal the name of the officer.

Michael Brendan Dougherty floated the idea that Babbitt was shot by Secret Service on his Twitter account in early June, writing in response to Aaron Babbitt’s lawsuit, ‘I mean, at this point you have to suspect that it’s not a Capitol cop.’ He replied ‘SS’ when asked who he thought could have been responsible instead.

The video of Babbitt being shot as she attempts to climb through a broken window that leads to the Speaker’s Gallery shows a man in a suit jacket holding the gun. The Capitol Police do have plainclothes officers, but it is much more common for the Secret Service’s protective details to be spotted in suits while tailing the president or vice president.

There have been many other theories as to who may have shot Babbitt. Some on social media posited it could be Special Agent David Bailey, the Capitol Police officer who took down the Bernie Sanders supporter that opened fire on a Republican baseball practice. However, the Capitol Police issued a statement in February denying that theory:

‘As the investigation continues into the events of January 6, 2021, it’s important to correct misinformation some in the media have reported, and that’s been shared on social media. Reports identifying Special Agent David Bailey as the officer involved in the shooting in the Speaker’s Lobby are inaccurate. The Department will share additional information once the investigation is complete.’

Cockburn reached out to Pence’s team for comment and was redirected to the US Secret Service. The Secret Service had a full 24 hours to give comment. They did not respond.

UPDATE (7/1/2021 6:15 p.m. ET):

The Secret Service finally responded to Cockburn’s inquiry more than a full day after publication of this piece. A spokesperson did not issue either a confirmation nor a denial of Cockburn’s conversations with his sources. Instead, Cockburn was directed to again read the Department of Justice press release from April in which the DoJ announces it will not file any charges against the ‘U.S. Capitol Police officer involved in the fatal shooting of 35-year-old Ashli Babbitt.’

Mr Pence was inside the Capitol when the riot began, presiding over the certification of the election results in a ceremonial role. After the mob breached the building, security rushed him out of the Senate chamber.

Mr Trump’s email appears to be an attempt to further stir up the controversy. Commentators from across the political spectrum condemned the provocation.

“So Donald Trump now asks: ‘Who shot Ashli Babbitt?’” conservative pundit Bill Kristol responded. “Look in the mirror. It is you who are in large measure responsible for her death. She was in DC because of you. She stormed the Capitol because of you. She is not alive now because of you.”

Democratic activist Chris Hahn had the same reaction.

“Donald Trump only needs to look in the mirror if he wants to know who killed Ashli Babbitt,” he tweeted.

Bill Kristol
@BillKristol
So Donald Trump now asks: “Who shot Ashli Babbitt?”
The answer: Have you no shame? Look in the mirror. It is you who are in large measure responsible for her death. She was in D.C. because of you. She stormed the Capitol because of you. She is not alive now because of you.
2:16 PM Jul 1, 2021

Joe Walsh
@WalshFreedom
So Donald Trump wants to know who’s responsible for the death of Ashli Babbitt?
HE is.
3:49 PM Jul 1, 2021

Vox reporter Aaron Rupar objected for another reason, taking aim at the underlying assumption of the question.

“The subtext of this Ashli Babbitt conspiracy theory is that the officer was somehow in the wrong for shooting someone who was trying to break through the last barricade preventing the Trump mob of which she was a part from attacking members of Congress,” he wrote.

A former New York City police commissioner, however, did not agree that this assumption was wrong.

“An unarmed young woman was shot at point-blank range and killed for trespassing,” Bernie Kerik tweeted. “Any cop in this country they did that anywhere else would already be in prison.”

It should be noted that although Ms Babbitt was reportedly unarmed, many in the mob did have weapons, including chemical sprays, spears, bats, stun guns, and fire extinguishers. By the time Ms Babbitt tried to crawl through a shattered window into the House chamber, Capitol Police had been warned the intruders were armed.

Former GOP congressman Joe Walsh, who unsuccessfully challenged Mr Trump for the Republican nomination in 2020, denounced the former president’s email.

“So Donald Trump wants to know who’s responsible for the death of Ashli Babbitt?” Mr Walsh tweeted. “HE is.”

The Independent has reached out to representatives for Mr Trump and Mr Pence for comment, but has not heard back yet.

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Donald Trump implies the Vice President's Security detail might have killed Ashli Babbitt
by The Young Turks
Jul 1, 2021

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[Cenk Uygur] By the way, today Donald Trump implied the Vice President's Security detail might have killed Ashli Babbitt. She was one of the people who participated in the riot and got shot by the police, by the Security. So he's implying that Pence's team did it, thereby putting Pence's team, and Pence himself, in literal mortal danger. They were looking to hang Mike Pence then, he's now baselessly claiming that it might have been Pence's team that killed one of the Trump supporters that broke into the Capitol. And now, all of those people who brought the nooses, and wanted to murder Mike Pence, are going to think, "Yeah, it was Pence! And he killed one of ours! And we've got to strike back!"

[Ana Kasparian] She was climbing through a broken window of a door to get into the area that members of Congress were running away from!

[Cenk Uygur] If they had broken through that last Security, they would have gotten to the members of Congress, as they were chanting about hanging people, okay? And meanwhile, if a Black guy even so much as looks in the wrong direction, the cops will shoot and kill him, and the Right Wing will say, "Of course! He had to! Come on! That cell phone could have been a thing!"

[Ana Kasparian] They justify Black people running away from the cops and getting shot in the back!

[Cenk Uygur] Yeah, but wait, there are people saying they are going to murder Congress people, and they broke into the final barrier, but, "Oh, no, no! That's terrible! I can't believe the cops would overstep like that! And let's go hang MIke Pence!"

So, I'm serious, they should double Mike Pence's security detail. This is insane! That the person whose life is in greatest danger because of Trump's fascism is his former Vice-President. It's total insanity!

At 8:40 minutes:

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Stochastic terrorism: There is nothing funny about Mike Pompeo's violent PAC recruitment ads
The PAC from the former secretary of state launches with a violent call to arms, recruiting "pipehitters" to join
by Chauncey Devega
PUBLISHED JUNE 18, 2021 5:50AM (EDT)

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Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

America feels like it's stuck in a version of Bill Murray's classic 1993 film "Groundhog Day," in which Murray's character is forever stuck reliving the same day.

But this real-life version of "Groundhog Day" is not a comedy — it is a dystopian horror movie.

Trump and his lackeys continue to show the American people and the world in an obvious, explicit way exactly who and what they are: neofascist authoritarians who support terrorism and other acts of violence to obtain and keep political power.

This anti-democracy behavior will continue because Trump and his followers have not been punished, nor suffered any negative consequences for their behavior.

Here's the most recent example.

On Tuesday, Mike Pompeo — 2024 Republican presidential hopeful, former secretary of state and CIA director for the Trump regime — announced the formation of his own political action committee called "CAVPAC".

He explains its mission as:

We named the organization CAVPAC as a nod to my time in the U.S. Army Cavalry – the CAV in the PAC. My cavalry service taught me that America needs warriors who lead and are willing to ride first into the fight without fear. CAV also stands for Champion American Values – the values that we know have made our country exceptional. The focus, the fight and the desire to win will be at the center of my work leading CAVPAC and those who join alongside us. We will support leaders of character and integrity who are wholly committed to these same values and will work without fear to build our future. Our mission is clear: take back the United States House of Representatives, the United States Senate, as well as build conservative state legislatures and governorships across the country. Concurrently, we will advocate together for these values in every space of American life. I ask that you join with me in the good and worthy fight to champion American values.

In conjunction with the announcement of his new PAC, Pompeo began sending out a series of tweets recruiting "pipehitters" to join his organization.

These tweets included these lines:

• "We need more Pipehitters to answer the call and defend our values. Are you with me?"
• "During our administration, we NEVER let anyone stand in our way of putting America first. If you're a Pipehitter like us, join the team."
• "One of the best CIA officers I worked with was a former special operator. When I'd ask him about someone, if they were top-notch, he'd say, 'love that guy. Pipehitter.' He meant that person got stuff done & was dedicated to the mission. All of us need to be Pipehitters".
• "Being a Pipehitter means getting stuff done and NEVER giving an inch. If you think you're a Pipehitter, join the @CAV_PAC Calvary [sic] now".

The website for Pompeo's new PAC also includes this call to action for its so-called "pipehitters":

Become a Pipehitter - someone who is unapologetically American, someone who fights for our future, someone who never gives an inch, someone who is dedicated to stand against the radical Left's agenda.

In your everyday lives, stand up for our future: at the PTA meeting, in your workplace, at the bowling alley. Be confident in reminding others of our vision. If you aren't comfortable with what you're seeing or hearing — no doubt others are feeling the same way. If you've witnessed attempts at systemic changes to the Left — or found a way to constructively resist those changes, write or send a video to Mike (to the left). Together, we'll sound the alarm.

Mike looks forward to hearing from you today. Join him as a Pipehitter in the Cavalry and be at the front of the battle to Champion American Values.

Beyond Pompeo's vague definition, what is a "pipehitter?"

In military slang, a "pipehitter" is a member of a special operations unit such as the Navy SEALs, Delta Force, the 75th Ranger Regiment, the Green Berets, or other elite forces.

The word "pipehitter" can also be used to describe a mafia enforcer or a street thug who is feared because of their prowess with and enthusiasm for violence.

"Pipehitter" has also been used to describe strikebreakers and other company enforcers who attacked union members and labor organizers in the 19th and 20th centuries in America and elsewhere.

Pompeo faced immediate criticism for the name of his new organization and his attempt to recruit "pipehitters."

But whichever definition of "pipehitters" suits Pompeo's new organization, such violent rhetoric hastens the normalization of political violence by today's Republican Party and the neofascist Trump movement.

The mission statement for Pompeo's new PAC signals to a right-wing fantasy world, where (white) "patriots" and "real Americans" are under siege and "victimized" in "their own country" by "evil" and "traitorous" "liberals." These "real American" "patriots" should be prepared to use violence to "defend" themselves and their communities, Pompeo hints.

This fascist aesthetic and political logic is antithetical to normal politics and democracy; such rhetoric implies that violence is an acceptable means of resolving political disagreements.

In normal times, Pompeo's PAC would just be one more (still dangerous) example of how American culture – especially on the right – fetishizes the military while celebrating a lazy, empty understanding of "patriotism."

But in America in the Age of Trump, Pompeo's PAC and its embrace of "pipehitters" reflects a much larger trend.

Donald Trump, his Republican Party and larger neofascist movement attempted a violent and lethal coup on January 6. The Big Lie, that the election was "stolen" from Donald Trump, continues to hold power over a majority of Republican voters. Moreover, more than 50 percent of Republicans actually believe that Donald Trump is still president, according to polling data. The Republican Party and its leaders refuse to properly investigate the coup. Why? Because they are implicated in it, and support using violence (including another coup attempt) to overthrow Democratic presidents and other elected leaders on the local, state, and national level.

For several decades, the right-wing disinformation news media — anchored by Fox News — has been using a technique known as "stochastic terrorism" to encourage violence against Democrats, liberals, progressives, Muslims, non-white people and other targeted groups.

Public opinion and other research repeatedly show that white Republican voters, Trumpists, and other right-wing voters increasingly support the use of political violence to "save" their "traditional way of life".

New research from the Chicago Project on Security and Terrorism also shows that white middle and upper class suburban Republican voters are also being increasingly radicalized into political violence because of a fear that they are being "replaced" by nonwhite people.

Law enforcement and other national security leaders and experts continue to warn that right-wing political violence represents the greatest threat to America's domestic safety and security.

In a new article in the Washington Monthly, Daniel Block details how right-wing extremism, polarization, and attacks on democracy more generally may push American society into a civil war or insurgency. In it, he notes:

Does America have enough extremists to sustain an insurgency? [...] Research suggests that tens of millions of Americans view political violence as acceptable. This doesn't mean that tens of millions of people are willing to commit violence themselves. But they don't need to be. According to The New York Times, between 15,000 and 20,000 Americans belong to militias. If there's at least tacit outside backing, that's more than enough potential actors. "These groups are in the hundreds, and membership is in the five digits," says Linda Robinson, a longtime foreign correspondent covering the Middle East and the director of the center for Middle East public policy at the RAND Corporation. "This puts it up at a parallel with some of the more significant armed insurgencies in other countries that many of us have spent years studying."

Block details the members of the right-wing "militia scene," ranging from the Three Percenters to the Oath Keepers to the Boogaloo Boys. Yet the right-wing militias in America are "diverse and chaotic," Block writes. "Without a clear hierarchy and leadership, America's militias would find it impossible to wage organized warfare against the federal government," he says. "That is part of why a redux of the 1860s is currently unlikely."

"But international experience suggests that disorganization among insurgents is no impediment to sustained violent activity," he continues. "Indeed, for many states struggling with serious civil conflict, diffuse terrorist networks are the norm."

That is troubling, and doesn't bode well for the future of the republic. Indeed, leading academics and other experts warn that US democracy is experiencing an existential crisis. That crisis was triggered by Trump and the GOP's assault on voting and civil rights, as well as on the rule of law, long-standing political norms, and governing institutions.

How did the public respond to Pompeo's new PAC and his attempts to recruit some "pipehitters" for his cause?

Online and elsewhere, there was much mockery. Many focused on the word "pipehitter" to make jokes about drugs, Pompeo's intelligence and that of his supporters. Those news websites that chose to cover Pompeo's announcement largely reported on the mockery as opposed to the substance of Pompeo's new PAC, or his rhetoric.

In total, Pompeo and his PAC are not being taken seriously by many in the public or among the chattering class.

As I have repeatedly warned here at Salon, this is all so much hysterical laughter and liberal schadenfreude by people who are in a state of existential terror because of the trauma inflicted on them by the Trump regime. In that way, the laughter is self-soothing, psychological defensive behavior.

Ultimately, laughter will not save the American people or their democracy from the monstrous forces of Trumpism. Why? Because it is a form of surrender and inertia, and not the positive action needed to effectively resist and then defeat American neofascism in its various forms.

Chauncey DeVega is a politics staff writer for Salon. His essays can also be found at Chaunceydevega.com. He also hosts a weekly podcast, The Chauncey DeVega Show. Chauncey can be followed on Twitter and Facebook.

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Trump Called For EXECUTION of His Own Staffer!?!
by The Young Turks
Jul 13, 2021

Donald Trump reportedly called for one of his own staffers, the "bunker boy" leaker, to be executed. Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur discuss on The Young Turks. Watch LIVE weekdays 6-8 pm ET. http://youtube.com/tyt/live

"Former President Donald Trump reportedly demanded the execution, for treason, of whoever told journalists about his seeking refuge in the White House’s underground bunker."

Hosts: Ana Kasparian, Cenk Uygur

Cast: Ana Kasparian, Cenk Uygur

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Trump Made Clear 'Threat' To Officer Who Shot Ashli Babbitt, Says Ex-FBI Deputy Director
The former president is "threatening law enforcement" like a "mob boss," said Andrew McCabe. "It's just outrageous."
by Mary Papenfuss
HuffPost US
August 14, 2021 02:48 BST

A chilling statement by former President Donald Trump attacking the police officer who fatally shot Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt is obviously a “threat,” warned former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe.

In an interview on CNN Thursday, McCabe blasted Trump’s comments as “incredibly dangerous.”

“We know this for a fact. This isn’t something we’re theorizing about,” he added, noting the effect Trump’s “words have on his most diehard and emotional supporters.”

Trump said in a statement posted to Twitter by his paid aide Liz Harrington on Wednesday that “we know who he is,” referring to the unidentified officer who killed Babbitt.

He added: “The Radical Left haters cannot be allowed to get away with this. There must be justice!”

McCabe noted: “Let’s face it, when he says, ‘We know who you are,’ that’s a threat. That’s the same sort of language that a mob boss or a drug kingpin would use to threaten a subordinate. ... So you have the former president of the United States threatening members of law enforcement. It’s just outrageous.”


Then-acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Capitol Hill on May 11, 2017.

Babbitt was fatally shot by a Capitol Police officer as she climbed through a smashed window on Jan. 6 while lawmakers were being evacuated in the Capitol riot. A disturbing video of the mob outside the barrier Babbitt breached and Babbitt’s shooting can be seen here.

The officer was cleared of any charges in the death of the 35-year-old Air Force veteran and ardent Trump supporter. A number of lawmakers have hailed the police officer as a hero who saved lives that day.

Former Capitol Police Captain Terrence Gainer also said on CNN that he views Trump’s remarks as a threat to the officer.

“I do believe that officer is at risk, could be at risk, his family could be at risk if his name gets out in the way the [former] president is suggesting,” said Gainer.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called Trump’s remarks about the officer “disgusting,” “vile” and “wholly unacceptable” on Thursday.

Trump’s chilling comment to his extremist followers comes just as the Department of Homeland Security is warning of an increased potential for violence due to Trump and his supporters’ baseless election fraud claims.

The DHS is seeing an increase in calls for “violence in response to the unsubstantiated claims of fraud related to the 2020 election fraud and the alleged ‘reinstatement’ of former President Trump,” a spokesperson told NBC News this week.

Trump is supposed to be banned from Twitter, but his paid aide posts all of his comments — often even before or if they appear anywhere else — on her Twitter account. Twitter has taken no action against Harrington, even though the company claims to have a policy against threats and against accounts brazenly posting messages from banned users.

Twitter ignored multiple requests from HuffPost to comment. Several Twitter users have reported Harrington’s reposted Trump comments to Twitter as both a threat and an obvious dodge of Twitter’s ban.

Check out McCabe’s full comments in the CNN video clip up top.

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Marjorie Taylor Greene suggests Southerners could 'welcome' Biden's 'police state friends' with guns
"We all love our Second Amendment rights," she said, adding, "They might not like the welcome they get.”
by Rebecca Shabad
NBC News
Aug. 6, 2021, 5:14 AM MST / Updated Aug. 6, 2021, 7:24 AM MST

WASHINGTON — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., suggested at a recent Republican fundraiser in Alabama that Southerners could threaten President Joe Biden's "police state friends" with guns if they show up at their homes asking about their coronavirus vaccination status.

The late-July event in Dothan was closed to the media, but a video clip of some of her comments leaked, according to the Alabama Political Reporter.

“You lucky people here in Alabama might get a knock on your door, because I hear Alabama might be one of the most unvaccinated states,” Greene told the crowd, prompting cheers and applause over the state's low vaccination rate. “Well, Joe Biden wants to come talk to you guys. He's going to be sending one of his police state friends to your front door to knock on the door, take down your name, your address, your family members' names, your phone numbers, your cellphone numbers, probably ask for your Social Security number and whether you've taken the vaccine or not.”

She continued: “What they don't know is in the South, we all love our Second Amendment rights, and we're not real big on strangers showing up on our front door, are we? They might not like the welcome they get.”

It wasn't clear whether Greene was referring to the administration's Covid surge response teams or grassroots volunteers encouraging vaccinations. The teams, made up of experts from FEMA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other federal agencies, aim to help states with low vaccination rates "prevent, detect and respond" to the spread of the delta variant.

NBC reached out to Greene's office for comment on the video and to confirm it showed her at the event. Her spokesman, Nick Dyer, simply replied, "These claims are ridiculous and yet another conspiracy theory from the left," without specifying what claims he meant.

The remarks from Greene, who has compared mask mandates to the Holocaust and was stripped of her committee assignments for promoting various conspiracy theories, mirrored other conservative rhetoric on Biden's plan.

At the event, Greene also denounced Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, referring to a conspiracy theory spread by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and other conservatives that suggests the National Institutes of Health helped fund “gain of function research” at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China that morphed into the coronavirus — an accusation that Fauci has said is false.

“That is his baby,” Greene said, referring to Fauci. “That is his experiment, and he's getting to watch it in the real world, like on a live television show where he has a front row seat. He gets to watch what happens.”

In remarks last month, Greene made another Nazi-era comparison regarding the coronavirus response, saying people who knock on doors encouraging vaccinations are “medical brown shirts,” referring to the paramilitary organization that helped facilitate the rise of the Nazis and Hitler.

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Arizona election official reacts to 'check your six' threat from Republican
by Erin Burnett
CNN
Aug 7, 2021

In an interview with CNN's Kate Bolduan, Maricopa County GOP official Bill Gates talks about the threats election officials have received for refusing to push Donald Trump's big election lie and support the baseless Arizona election audit.

[Erin Burnett] "Check your six." That's a message from one Republican Arizona State Senator threatening members of her own party to watch their backs, for refusing to push the Big Lie and support the baseless Arizona election audit. State Senator Wendy Rogers sending out a fundraising email saying "Personally, I think they should be in jail. Let me put it this way: I'm Air Force and Sonny Borrelli is a Marine. I can tell you that when I landed my C-141 and 200 Marines would exit out the back ... well, you wouldn't want to be in the way. We are coming for you. You'd better check your six."

One of those members of the Board of Supervisors that they are talking about, Bill Gates, actually also received this orange prison jumpsuit in the mail today after she sent out that email calling for them to be put in jail. OutFront now, Bill Gates, the Republican Chairman of Maricopa County's Board of Supervisors. Thank you for coming in, Bill. You've been dealing with this sham audit for months now, but now being threatened and warned by other elected Republicans to watch your back. Can you just talk to me about the level of threats that you have been receiving, especially now?

[Bill Gates] Yeah, unfortunately the threats continue and they are not simply organic. They are being driven, unfortunately, by members of the Arizona State Senate and other Republicans across the country. We have received phone calls into our offices, the Board of Supervisors, our Staff, saying that our families are going to be slaughtered, and threatening us to stop standing up for the good election workers of Maricopa County.

[Erin Burnett] I want to offer some context here. You are now being targeted because you are standing up against the sham audit altogether. But specifically, because you are refusing now to hand over the routers used by the county's election division, which the State Senate has tried to subpoena multiple times. The same thing that former President Trump and his supporters are also calling for. Let me play this for folks.

[Former President Donald Trump] They don't want to give up the routers! They don't want to give them. They are fighting like hell -- Why are these commissioners fighting not to give the routers?

[Mike Lindell] We're going to pull the packet captures out of the routers and then we're going to have a cyber guy, he'll read it, and he'll go "here's what happened. Computer I.D. -- BOOM. Here's who did it. Here's the attacker. Here's the attackee.

[Erin Burnett] Now, importantly, this is a wild and baseless conspiracy theory that voting machines in your county were connected to the Internet on election day and somehow, Italian satellites were utilized to change votes from Trump to Biden. Can you lay out once and for all what you know about these routers -- it sounds ever crazy when I ask it, but I do want to ask it -- what you even know about these routers, and why you will not turn them over.

[Bill Gates] Yes, so here's the issue. This all comes down to the question of whether the machines used in the November 2020 election were connected to the Internet, and THEY WERE NOT. We had two independent auditors come in, the Board of Supervisors voted for this, and they established that these machines were not connected to the Internet. Furthermore, we have provided logs pursuant to these subpoenas from the Arizona State Senate that if the Cyber Ninjas knew what they were looking at, they would see that these logs establish that these machines were never connected to the Internet. But they continue to push forward asking for the routers. Just so your viewers understand, the reason that we're not turning over these routers, is because they basically would provide a blueprint if they got into the wrong hands of the information systems at Maricopa County. Now why is that an issue? Well, we have a lot of personal information of our citizens on those routers, but more than that, actually if this got into the wrong hands, it would provide information on sensitive law enforcement activities, law-enforcement personnel, that could put these operations at risk. And it's not just Maricopa County, because we share these databases with law enforcement across the state. So this could literally threaten sensitive law enforcement activities across the state of Arizona if we were to turn these routers over.

[Erin Burnett] But still, the threats come in, these elected officials know this or could know this very easily, but do not, and you and your family now remain in danger. Bill Gates, thank you for coming on.

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Arizona GOP Official Says Family Threatened With Slaughter After He Defended Election's Integrity
by Jason Lemon
Newsweek
8/7/21 AT 12:37 PM EDT

A Republican official from Arizona's Maricopa County warned that people have threatened to slaughter the families of local leaders after they stood up for the integrity of the 2020 election, as former President Donald Trump and other Arizona GOP lawmakers attempt to undermine it.

Bill Gates, a Republican member of Maricopa County's Board of Supervisors representing District 3, spoke with CNN on Friday regarding the threats he and other county leaders have received as they've pushed back against lies and misinformation being spread about the last election.

Arizona's state Senate Republicans have been working with Florida-based Cyber Ninjas to conduct a widely panned audit of the state's 2020 election results, driven by former President Donald Trump's debunked allegations that President Joe Biden won there through fraud.

"Unfortunately, the threats continue and they're not simply organic. They're being driven, unfortunately, by members of the Arizona state Senate and other Republicans across the country," Gates told CNN. "We receive phone calls into our offices at the Board of Supervisors, our staff, you know saying that our families are gonna be slaughtered. And threatening us to stop standing up for the good elections' workers of Maricopa County."

Karen Fann, the Republican president of the Arizona Senate, dismissed Gates' suggestion that the death threats were driven by GOP leaders.

"If he sincerely believes these comments are driven by actions of Republican leaders than does he also believe all the death threats I've received is because of the actions of the [Maricopa County] Board of Supervisors and Democrats?" Fann said in a Saturday email to Newsweek.

"Threats are never acceptable on any level towards anyone and they must stop," she wrote.

Republican leaders from Maricopa County have repeatedly debunked and pushed back against the baseless, and often bizarre, claims promoted by Trump and other GOP officials about the 2020 election there.

Gates again addressed some of the groundless allegations during the interview.

"This all comes down to the question of whether the machines used in the November 2020 election were connected to the internet, and they were not," Gates asserted.

The local GOP official pointed out that Maricopa County already had two independent auditors review the machines, establishing that they "were not connected to the internet."

Cyber Ninjas and state Senate Republicans have demanded that Maricopa County hand over routers to be investigated. Gates explained that county officials have already provided logs demonstrating that the routers were not connected to the internet. He said the county cannot turn over the actual routers without seriously compromising its information system, which is also shared with law enforcement.

Trump supporters and conspiracy theorists—such as MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell—have jumped behind false claims that China hacked the 2020 election using satellites. As Gates and other county election officials have explained, this is not possible because the machines were not connected to the internet. Officials have also pointed out that there are paper ballots, and that audits have already been conducted to confirm that the machine tallies were correct.

Nancy Przewrocki—the clerk of Delta County in Michigan where Trump won in 2020—asserted that ballot counting machines are "never connected to the internet" in a recent interview with CNN. Delta County is one of many in the country that has been the target of Lindell's and other Trump allies' claims of hacking and fraud.

"Never connected to the internet, at all, whatsoever," Przewrocki asserted.

Officials in Maricopa County completed a formal audit of their election results last November without uncovering any discrepancies. But GOP state Senate lawmakers have pushed forward with their own audit, driven by Trump's false claims.

Jack Sellers, a Republican who chairs the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, blasted the "incompetence" of Cyber Ninjas in mid-July. He's also taken aim at Republicans in the state Senate, saying they "should be ashamed" of promoting "half-baked theories of the 'Deep Rig.'"

Updated 2:54 PM ET, with a statement from Karen Fann.

[admin]

Capitol bomb threat suspect charged with threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction
by Christina Carrega, Marshall Cohen and Tierney Sneed
CNN
Updated 5:36 PM ET, Fri August 20, 2021
capitol threat suspected explosives suspect nobles dnt ac360 vpx_00011030

'It's my land': Bomb threat suspect livestreams grievances on Facebook 03:24

(CNN)The Justice Department has charged Capitol bomb threat suspect Floyd Ray Roseberry with threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to use an explosive device, a judge said Friday.

The charges were unsealed during Roseberry's first court appearance in DC District Court. Roseberry, who identified himself as 51, is currently in jail, and prosecutors say they will seek to keep him behind bars while his case progresses in court.

Roseberry, who was taken into custody after allegedly threatening to detonate a bomb near the US Capitol on Thursday.

The day before, a person related to Roseberry warned local law enforcement in North Carolina that he was planning to travel to Washington, DC, or Virginia to "conduct acts of violence," according to court documents unsealed Friday.

A local official from Cleveland County, North Carolina, who was not named in court documents, contacted the FBI on Thursday as events were unfolding in Washington. The detail was revealed Friday in an affidavit in support of the criminal complaint filed against Roseberry.

The person related to Roseberry, unnamed in the affidavit, also reported to the North Carolina official that Roseberry "had stated that he 'ordered a trench coat to protect him from Taser and pepper ball guns and he would just tip his cowboy hat at the police,'" according to the affidavit.

Roseberry appeared in a teleconference before US Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui on Friday afternoon. The hearing was kept brief as questions were raised about the health of Roseberry, whom authorities had identified as being 49 years old on Thursday. Roseberry told the judge he had not, in the last two days, taken his medications for his blood pressure and for his "mind."

"My concern is that the defendant has stated that he is unable to understand the proceedings today without his medication," Faruqui said during the hearing, and the judge ordered a psychological evaluation.

During a standoff with police on Thursday, Roseberry ranted about access to health care and other political matters, pushing several right-wing talking points about immigrants and Democrats. He did not have any outbursts during Friday's court hearing and praised the judge who was handling the virtual proceedings.

"We don't have to see each other eye-to-eye," Roseberry told the judge. "I can tell in your voice that you're a good man. And I don't have to not trust you. I'm willing to do whatever you ask."

At the hearing, the judge appointed David Bos, a public defender, to represent Roseberry.

The Thursday incident prompted multiple buildings in the area to be evacuated as authorities responded to an "active bomb threat investigation," the US Capitol Police wrote on Twitter.

USCP said in a news release later Thursday that no bomb was found in Roseberry's truck but that he did possess suspected bomb-making material. DC Police said in a tweet that the vehicle he was driving had been "cleared," and that road closures near the scene were lifted. USCP Chief Tom Manger, who told reporters on Thursday that authorities couldn't yet identify a motive, said that so far there is "no indication" Roseberry was acting with others.

Roseberry had been live-streaming from the scene, Manger said. A roughly half-hour Facebook video showed him inside a truck, holding a cannister that he said was a bomb and speaking about a "revolution." The video and Roseberry's Facebook profile have since been removed.
On Roseberry's now-removed Facebook page, he frequently made pro-Trump posts and posted videos from Trump's "Million MAGA March" on November 14.

The next hearing in Roseberry's case is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.

If convicted on the bomb threat charge, Roseberry could face life in prison, the judge said. If convicted on the second count, attempting to use an explosive device, the maximum penalty would be 10 years in prison.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNN's Whitney Wild, Devan Cole, Lauren Fox, Daniella Diaz, Annie Grayer, Hannah Rabinowitz and Olanma Mang contributed to this report.

[admin]

Suspect in Capitol bomb threat echoed 'Big Lie,' demanded free health insurance
In hours of livestreamed videos, Floyd Ray Roseberry demanded Democrats step down and complained about illegal immigrants getting health insurance.
Jordan Fischer
Published: 5:18 PM EDT August 19, 2021
Updated: 1:37 PM EDT August 20, 2021



WASHINGTON — In hours of live-streamed video Thursday, a North Carolina man ranted against President Joe Biden, Democrats, illegal immigrants and the health care system while daring federal agents to shoot him – the trigger, he said, to detonate a bomb inside of the truck he’d parked outside of the Library of Congress.

Congressional staffers were alerted to a suspicious building on the Capitol campus around 10 a.m. Thursday morning. Capitol police eventually decided to evacuate several office buildings – including the Madison, Jefferson and Cannon buildings – and businesses and residents in the immediate surrounding area as police attempted to negotiate with a man they identified Thursday afternoon as 49-year-old Floyd Ray Roseberry, of Grover, North Carolina.

Roseberry was eventually taken into custody without incident around 2 p.m. Investigators said they did not find an explosive device in his truck, but did find "possible bomb-making materials."

In multiple livestreams to his Facebook page beginning around 7 a.m. Thursday, Roseberry vented a litany of complaints, ranging from the quality of modern coinage – at one point saying “Your pennies are rotting, Joe!” – to the American treatment of Afghans during the ongoing troop withdrawal. He also repeatedly called on Biden, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats to step down.

“You step down out of office, I’ll step down out of this truck,” Roseberry said. “You go home. I’ll go to federal prison.”

CONFIRMED. Deputy Chief Philip Todd of the Cleveland County, NC Sheriffs Office confirms the man seen live-streaming on Facebook is man being investigated for sitting in a truck full of explosives outside US Capitol, Floyd Ray Roseberry. FBI, Homeland questioning wife @wusa9 pic.twitter.com/87wG9XuzxX

— Eric Flack (@EricFlackTV) August 19, 2021

In his videos, Roseberry said he was “picked by the American [expletive] people to come up here and take a stand.” Much of his ranting was directed specifically at Biden and suggested he believed in the baseless election fraud conspiracy theories pushed by former President Donald Trump and other prominent Republicans that Biden was not legally elected.

“I just got chose for the job. Unlike you,” Roseberry said. “This ain’t about politics. I don’t care if Donald Trump ever becomes president again. I think y'all Democrats need to step down. Y'all need to understand people don’t want you there.”

The truck Roseberry drove from North Carolina was filled with bags and tubs of loose change apparently designed to turn the vehicle into a huge IED. Roseberry was vague about the nature of the supposed explosive device. At one point he claimed he had a “toolbox full of ammonium nitrate.” At another, he said police should ask their experts “what a 7-pound beg of gunpowder would do with 2.5-lbs. of Tannerite.”

“Biden, there’s a change shortage for a reason. I’ve got it all. I got loads of it,” Roseberry said. “And it don’t take but a half a roll of nickel to equal a .50-caliber bullet. And I’m telling you, they come in, they start shooting this window out… this bomb’s going off.”

Roseberry stated at times that he had driven up alone to “build the foundation of the revolution,” and at others that he was one of five people in explosive-laden vehicles around D.C. As of Thursday afternoon, police had not confirmed the existence of any other suspicious vehicles in the District.

“Southern boys are here,” Roseberry said. “You can take me out. But when you do, you know what’s going to happen Joe Biden? There’s going to be a chain reaction. And that chain reaction’s going to be on your hands.”

‘Where’s your insurance at, Biden?’

While Roseberry at times attempted to paint himself variously as the embodiment of “the South” or as a handpicked representative of the American people, much of his motivation seemed to derive from a personal animus against the U.S. health care system.

"We do know Mr. Roseberry has had some losses of family. I believe his mother recently passed away," U.S. Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said in a press conference Thursday.

Roseberry’s mother died of cancer, he said in one of his streams, and his wife had been denied insurance coverage for treatment of an unspecified cancer on her face. He claimed he had recently been denied coverage as well for shots “just so I can walk.”

“I went to the doctor yesterday to get some of those cell therapy shots they’ve been bragging about giving to athletes all these years. The doctor says, ‘No shots today. Insurance don’t cover it anymore,’” Roseberry said. “My wife goes to the doctor. She’s got cancer. And they told her it wouldn’t cover it anymore because it’s cosmetic. It’s on her face. Where’s your insurance at Biden? Obama? You keep on letting all these illegal Mexicans in here, all these illegal immigrants in here from Afghanistan… we’re going to have free health care for us. You’re [expletive] giving it to them. The South’s fed up!”

Roseberry’s home state of North Carolina is one of a dozen states with Republican-controlled legislatures that have not yet adopted expanded Medicaid eligibility granted by the Obama-Biden administration’s signature health care legislation, the Affordable Care Act. In states that have adopted expansion, the law allows households to qualify for Medicaid coverage if their income is below 133% of the federal poverty level – roughly $35,000 a year for a family of four. Roseberry was registered as a Republican when he voted in the 2016 and 2020 general elections, according to a public records search.

Capitol bomb threat suspect Floyd Roseberry spent a lot of time on stream talking about his insurance woes. But the registered Republican comes from a state, North Carolina, where his own party has blocked the ACA's Medicaid expansion. Map via @KFF: https://t.co/1V3IknYFQt pic.twitter.com/jTMjkFG3ly

— Jordan Fischer (@JordanOnRecord) August 19, 2021

Those same records showed no significant property assets in Roseberry’s name – but a history of financial troubles. Court records show he filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy in 1998, which establishes a payment plan for unpaid debts, and then Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2000. Chapter 7 bankruptcy allows a trustee to sell off whatever assets are available to pay off creditors. His most recent employment was listed as an assistant supervisor at a women’s apparel manufacturer.

North Carolina court records show Roseberry has a limited criminal history. He was found guilty of obstruction of police in 1993 and sentenced to 60 days in jail and 2 years of supervised probation. In 2000 he was charged with assault on a female, but the case was resolved in mediation and the charges were dismissed.