A Well-Regulated Militia.

[Rick Plant]

So much for the bogus false claim that "nobody was threatened" on January 6th and these were just simply "protesters". Trump supporters who are the extreme right wing militias wanted to gas Democratic Congressmen to death inside the tunnels they were hiding in from Trump's rioters. The day before on Jan 5, 2021, insurrectionists were given a "tour" of the Capitol by Republican Representative Barry Loudermilk where they were taking pictures of these tunnels and staircases, so they knew exactly where our elected officials would be. These are the same militias who plotted to take over government buildings in DC by force. Their plans are in my post above.       

Oath Keepers plotted to attack lawmakers in tunnels photographed by GOPer’s Capitol tour group
Extremists plotted to "gas" lawmakers after "sealing them in" the Capitol tunnels

Right wing extremists charged in the U.S. Capitol riot threatened to "gas" lawmakers in tunnels where Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., led a tour the previous day.

The Georgia Republican led a group of 15 individuals later identified by police as constituents on a tour of the Capitol complex, where one participant took photos of hallways, staircases and tunnels, and that same man was shown on video from Jan. 6 shouting threats against individual Democratic lawmakers.

"We're coming to take you out and pull you out by your hairs," the man says, referring to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. "When I get done with you, you're going to need a shine on top of that bald head."

Conspiracy charges filed shortly after the riot showed a group of three Oath Keepers were particularly interested in lawmakers' movements in the tunnels underneath the Capitol complex, and one of them, Thomas Edward Caldwell, allegedly received a Facebook message about them.

"All members are in the tunnels under capital seal them in," reads the message. "Turn on gas."

Caldwell also received another message on the topic, according to an affidavit that replicates spelling errors in the original statement.

"Tom all legislators are down in the Tunnels 3 floors down," the message reads. "Do like we had to do when I was in the core (sic) start tearing oit florrs go from top to bottom."

The Jan. 6 committee noted on Wednesday that the tour had visited "entrances to Capitol tunnels."

"Individuals on the tour photographed/recorded areas not typically of interest to tourists: hallways, staircases and security checkpoints," the committee tweeted.

https://www.salon.com/2022/06/15/oath-keepers-plotted-to-lawmakers-in-tunnels-photographed-by-gopers-capitol-tour-group_partner/

[Rick Plant]

We read the bogus claim above that these insurrectionists "weren't threatening anyone".

Well, why does this militia insurrectionist who illegally broke into the House chamber have zip ties in his hand?

He wanted to take members of Congress as hostages to overthrow the government.

[Rick Plant]

'Devastating piece of evidence': Filing reveals a Proud Boys plan to storm buildings Jan. 6
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/06/15/1776-returns-proud-boys-enrique-tarrio-zachary-rehl/7640565001/

[Rick Plant]

Firearms, a drone and 30 days of supplies: New details of Oath Keepers Jan. 6 weapons cache
Prosecutors provided new details about the weapons stockpile Oath Keepers had assembled at a Comfort Inn in nearby Arlington, Va.
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/01/19/oath-keepers-jan-6-weapons-cache-527359

[Rick Plant]

U.S. charges three, including an Oath Keepers volunteer, for roles in Capitol attack



WASHINGTON, June 15 (Reuters) - Three Florida residents were charged on Wednesday in connection with the January 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, including one of whom prosecutors said sought to volunteer with the far-right Oath Keepers militia.

The Justice Department said that Leslie Gray, 56, Traci Isaacs, 52, and her husband, Luis Hallon, 67, of St. Cloud, Florida were all arrested on Wednesday.

Gray is facing felony charges of civil disorder and obstruction of an official proceeding and other misdemeanors, while Isaacs is charged with destruction of documents and other lesser offenses, while Hallon is facing several misdemeanors.

All three are accused of illegally entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Isaacs, who is a paramedic, is alleged to have submitted an application with the Oath Keepers to volunteer her medical services.

A number of the group's members, including its leader Stewart Rhodes, are due to go to trial later this year on seditious conspiracy charges in connection with the riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Prosecutors say Isaacs later deleted text messages exchanged on Jan. 6, but the FBI was able to recover some of them. In one message, she told someone: “Delete anything I sent you please. Feds are going after people hard.”

More than 840 been charged with taking part in the Capitol riot in which supporters of Republican then-President Donald Trump tried to prevent formal congressional certification of his 2020 election loss to Democrat Joe Biden, attacking police and sending lawmakers scrambling for safety.

Trump has made false claims that he lost due to widespread voting fraud.

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-charges-three-including-an-oath-keepers-volunteer-roles-capitol-attack-2022-06-15/

[Rick Plant]

Prosecutors seek probe of whether Trump-allied lawyer is funding Oath Keepers defense

The DOJ cited reports alleging that legal fees are being paid by an entity controlled by attorney Sidney Powell, who played a key role in Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election.



WASHINGTON — U.S. prosecutors asked a judge on Wednesday to launch an ethics inquiry into whether defense lawyers for prominent members of the right-wing Oath Keepers are improperly allowing an attorney closely allied with former President Donald Trump to help pay their legal fees.

The Justice Department’s court filing cited media reports alleging that the legal fees for Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes are being paid by Defending the Republic, an entity controlled by Sidney Powell, an attorney who played a key role in Trump’s attempt to overturn his election defeat. The group is also paying fees for Oath Keeper defendants Kelly Meggs, Connie Meggs and Kenneth Harrelson, it said.

The payments, if true, could violate professional conduct rules limiting compensation methods for attorneys in the District of Columbia, prosecutors said.

Under those rules, defense lawyers must only accept payments from their own clients, unless three conditions are met: The client must give informed consent, information related to the representation must be protected, and the third-party fee arrangement cannot cause “interference with the lawyer’s independence of professional judgment or with the client-lawyer relationship.”

Powell did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rhodes and the Oath Keepers are due to go to trial in September over charges of seditious conspiracy for their alleged roles in the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

More than 840 people have been charged with taking part in the Capitol riot in which Trump supporters tried to prevent certification of his 2020 loss to Democrat Joe Biden, attacking police and sending lawmakers scrambling for safety.

“The government is filing this motion because it has an interest and an obligation to ensure it represents its client, the United States,” prosecutors wrote on Wednesday. “Those duties include raising potential conflicts with the Court as they arise.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/prosecutors-seek-probe-trump-allied-lawyers-funding-oath-keepers-defen-rcna34830

[Rick Plant]

Is Sidney Powell Secretly Funding the Oath Keepers’ Lawyers? The Feds Want to Know.

The DOJ is concerned that Sidney Powell may be paying for lawyers for Oath Keepers who breached the Capitol—and they want to find out if the Oath Keepers even know.



Federal prosecutors in the nation’s capital are trying to drag several lawyers representing indicted Oath Keepers before a judge to make them explain how exactly they’re getting paid, citing a concern that conspiracy theorist Sidney Powell is actually covering the legal tab.

On Wednesday, the Department of Justice asked a federal judge to intervene to ensure that members of the armed, anti-government paramilitary group have “competent and conflict-free” attorneys.

They cited recent reports in Mother Jones and BuzzFeed News that laid out how Powell’s political group, Defending the Republic, has quietly funded several defense lawyers.

While the DOJ’s move may seem odd, it behooves prosecutors to have Oath Keepers adequately defended so that any eventual criminal trial is free from accusations of an unfair fight.

More than a dozen members of the MAGA-loyal militia face the extremely rare and serious criminal charge of seditious conspiracy for taking part in the violent insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, when they took part in storming the Capitol building—and kept stashes of firearms and military gear at the ready just outside the District of Columbia.

In their five-page court filing, prosecutors warned that Powell’s secret funding campaign might violate the region’s legal ethics rules, which prohibit lawyers from getting paid by someone other than their client if the agreement causes “interference with the lawyer’s independence of professional judgment.”

The letter, which covers a whopping 17 defendants involved in three different criminal cases, listed five prosecutors from the District of Columbia’s local U.S. Attorney’s Office and two additional lawyers from the DOJ’s National Security Division.

In a separate letter prosecutors sent directly to these defense attorneys last week, they suggested having an outside entity bankroll the defense presented a conflict of interest, because a stronger defense could make these accused insurrectionists less likely drop their fight early and strike a plea deal—a gamble that could ultimately land each person more time in prison, if convicted.

“This fact could be against the interest of a particular defendant,” prosecutors wrote in a footnote.

Prosecutors revealed that they questioned all the defense attorneys about the financing arrangement, but only some of them assured that they weren’t being funded by Powell. Others either dodged the question or didn’t respond at all.

According to prosecutors, two attorneys who represent the farming couple Kelly and Connie Meggs, as well as another lawyer who represents Florida man Kenneth Harrelson, told the government they weren’t breaking the rules—but wouldn’t say how they’re getting paid. Meanwhile, they got no response at all from the lawyers who separately represent the eyepatch-sporting Oath Keepers leader from Texas, Elmer Stewart Rhodes, and Ohio bartender Jessica Watkins.

Prosecutors also got a cryptic response from another lawyer who seemed to suggest that Powell’s group is paying for the defense of Roberto Minuta, who owns a tattoo shop in a small Hudson River city just north of New York City.

“Should Judge Mehta wish for my client or me to explain the arrangement for funding my client’s legal defense in order to confirm that my client’s Sixth Amendment right to conflict free counsel are being afforded—or waived—we will provide him with whatever information he requests,” Hawaii-based defense lawyer William Shipley wrote to prosecutors.

None of these lawyers responded to several requests for comment from The Daily Beast on Wednesday.

But one attorney who previously represented Rhodes and other members of rightwing organizations now being targeted by the DOJ—and struck an arrangement to get paid by Defending the Republic—told The Daily Beast that Powell’s group is doing itself a disservice by operating with secrecy.

“Should Judge Mehta wish for my client or me to explain the arrangement for funding my client’s legal defense in order to confirm that my client’s Sixth Amendment right to conflict free counsel are being afforded—or waived—we will provide him with whatever information he requests,” Hawaii-based defense lawyer William Shipley wrote to prosecutors.

None of these lawyers responded to several requests for comment from The Daily Beast on Wednesday.

But one attorney who previously represented Rhodes and other members of rightwing organizations now being targeted by the DOJ—and struck an arrangement to get paid by Defending the Republic—told The Daily Beast that Powell’s group is doing itself a disservice by operating with secrecy.

Moseley detailed some of those concerns in a court filing last year when he was still representing Zachary Rehl, the leader of the Proud Boys’ chapter in Philadelphia. In that filing, Moseley explained the method by which attorneys seem to be getting funding from Powell’s group.

“Counsel formally applied for financial assistance and coverage for Zachary Rehl’s legal fees and expenses from Defending the Republic on December 2, 2021, after weeks of discussing the availability of such assistance with DTR and Zachary Rhel through his wife,” he wrote then, explaining how Powell’s group eventually “approved Zachary Rehl for financial assistance (donations) to cover his legal fees and expenses through trial in May to June 2022.”

The plan didn’t work out, though, as Rehl eventually went with a court-appointed attorney anyway.

Powell did not respond to requests for comment. However, The Daily Beast reached a Texas attorney at Defending the Republic, Travis Wilson Miller, by phone. When this reporter identified himself, the line went dead. Pressed for an explanation, Miller later texted back “bad service” and requested all questions in writing—but did not answer any of them.

Powell launched two versions of Defending the Republic registered in Dallas, Texas: a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization and a Political Action Committee. The nonprofit’s website lists among its causes “election fraud,” “fighting lawfare,” and “defending Jan 6ers.”

On her group’s website, Powell writes that “those who actually broke into the Capitol, who destroyed property or stole property, who attacked an officer, should be held accountable.” But she also positions that alongside disproven conspiracy theories about the insurrection being “a ‘false flag’ operation created by someone on the left” and decrying the treatment of people “jailed for whatever the government says they did at the Capitol.”

Her nonprofit has also become a vehicle for all kinds of rightwing lightning rod issues.

Earlier this month, Defending the Republic sued the Food and Drug Administration demanding that the government agency quickly turn over records reflecting the way it approved the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. The lawsuit is chock full of ominous sounding anti-vax points about the “glaring issues in the approval process.” The complaint was electronically signed by Miller, Powell, and Texas attorney Robert H. Holmes.

Meanwhile, Federal Election Records show that Powell’s similarly named PAC was used to bankroll the infamous Cyber Ninjas for their so-called election audit in Arizona, a misadventure that perpetuated unproven claims of election fraud and ended when the group concluded that now-President Joe Biden did, in fact, beat former President Donald Trump fair and square. According to FEC records, the PAC paid the Florida computer technicians $14,995 in September last year.

The matter of ensuring that Oath Keepers who are taking money from Powell’s group are aware of that potential conflict is currently before U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta. Prosecutors have asked him to hold “on the record” meetings in his chambers with each defense lawyer to have them explain the financial arrangements—and if their clients understand the implications.

Mehta could rule on the prosecutors’ motion in the coming days or weeks.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/is-sidney-powell-secretly-funding-the-oath-keepers-lawyers-the-feds-want-to-know