I FEEL BAD saying this, but there are times when it appears an alarming percentage of Trump fans will believe anything. If Reject-President Don claimed Joe Biden had been snacking on babies in the Oval Office every day, since taking an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution, they’d start looking for bones.
(Wait: That’s the QAnon shtick.)
Another recent example comes to us by way of Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey. He’s the top elected Republican in that state. In a February 3 meeting with party luminaries, including at least one who had attended the Trump rally in Washington D.C. on January 6, Shirkey played detective.
A really daft detective.
____________________
“Who is going to be in DC on January 6th to stand with President Donald Trump?”
GOP
Congresswoman Lauren Boebert
____________________
Like all good Americans, Shirkey
was shocked by scenes of violence on Capitol Hill. The question, then, in
Detective Shirkey’s mind: Who would stoop so low as to attack democracy itself?
Like so many Trump fans, willing and able, even happy to believe anything, Shirkey solved that crime with ease.
“That wasn’t Trump people,” he told his equally-obtuse listeners. “That’s been a hoax from day one. That was all prearranged.”
According to a recording of the
conversation, one of his listeners suggested that police tear-gassed “their own
guards.”
Shirkey agreed. “Why wasn’t there more security there? It was ridiculous. It was all staged.” He insisted that Mitch McConnell “was part of it. ...They wanted to have a mess.” He did admit that Trump backers “probably got caught up in the emotion” of the mob. But who could blame those patriots?
Right?
Once the tape leaked, Shirkey
apologized for sounding like a fool. So allow me to help anyone who is still
operating under this misconception. It wasn’t a pack of wild liberals busting
up democracy on January 6. It was Trump guys, led on by other Trump guys, and incited
by Trump himself. It was a whole bunch of right-wing extremists, a rock-solid
subset of the new GOP base.
*
WHEN IT COMES to evidence, we at A Liberal in Trumpistan are dogged in pursuit. That means we have examined records of more than 220 arrestees from the January 6 brawl. We are still looking for the elusive proof – to show that rioters weren’t Trump supporters.
(We
may have found one, possibly two, who weren’t.)
Picking up the numbering where we left off in a previous blog post, we add the most recent arrestees:
203. Suzanne Kaye: First up is Ms. Kaye, a profoundly stupid Trump fan from Florida. She not only participated in the riot on January 6, it seems, she decided to make a video, explaining what she would do if F.B.I. agents showed up at her door to talk.
As the Daily Mail, a British tabloid explains, “Kaye released a rage-fuelled [sic] video of herself chugging Jack Daniels Cinnamon Spice from the bottle while ‘Every Breath You Take’ plays in the background.”
In the clip, she says she has already been contacted by phone, but told agents, “I ain’t gonna talk to you unless I have counsel.” But she can’t afford counsel. So fuck them. Besides, they just “spent four years persecuting a three-star general [she means Michael T. Flynn], without evidence …. I’m an American,” she sneers. “I know my rights.”
Actually, she doesn’t. She’s right about free speech, and the right to “carry a gun…” but when she adds, “to shoot your fucking ass if you come to my house,” she goes a bit too far. She closes with several “fuck you’s” and goes back, we assume, to chugging Jack straight from the bottle.
The F.B.I. was tipped off about Kaye, after a witness told them she had posted “anti-Biden” and “anti-Democratic” statements on social media and bragged about taking part in the Capitol Hill riot.
If Mr. Shirkey ever reads this blog, he could start keeping count right here. That would be:
Liberal
types: 0
*
204. Daniel Dean Egtvedt: Mr. Egtvedt can be seen in pictures on social media, hanging with Lara Trump and Mike Pence.
According to The Daily Beast, social media accounts that appear to belong to Egtvedt show that he is “well-connected in conservative and right-wing circles. He has visited the White House at least twice – including the 2018 Christmas party at which he met the actor Jon Voight.”
In the days leading up to the riot, Egtvedt made it clear why he was heading for D.C. “Good Day patriots!” he posted, “....on the 12 day of Christmas my President said to me ....... (come to DC) .... (1776/2?) be a part of history...(see you soon) ...(truth revealed) .... (victory is ours...) it going to be huuuuuge!”
Prosecutors say Capitol Police tried three times to eject Egtvedt from the building. He resisted each time, even telling a female officer, “Shoot me.” At least one male officer was knocked down and injured while trying to drag the big, burly, law & order-loving Trump fan out.
And, in bonus, right-wing-nut news: Egtvedt is a big fan of QAnon conspiracy thinking. “Stop the Steal” meets “Stop the Cannibal Liberals from Sucking the Blood of Our American Babies.”
So, let’s keep track today, posting the numbers every so often, as we go:
Trump supporters: 2
Liberal types: 0
*
205. Christian Secor: This twenty-two-year old UCLA senior has been arrested and, like Egtvedt, charged with assaulting an officer.
Secor is a self-described fascist – the pole opposite of the Antifa type – and president of “America First Bruins.” Federal agents were tipped off by several of his peers, who said Secor had “posted threats online and openly posted calls for America to become a whites-only nation.”
He should
be out of jail in time to vote for Trump in 2024, unless he lives in a state
that bars felons from the polls.
*
206: Felicia Konold: This 26-year-old Arizona woman’s claim to fame is having been recruited by the Proud Boys. ABC News has called the Proud Boys + Felicia, “a neofascist organization that describes itself as ‘Western chauvinists’ and has long forbidden female members.”
In the past, the Boys have displayed a pronounced misogynistic streak. When one young woman inquired about setting up a “Proud Girls” group, she was quickly rebuffed. “Want to support us? Get married, have babies, and take care of your family,” leaders of the Boys scoffed.
Prosecutors allege that William Chrestman, described as the
leader of Kansas City Proud Boys cell, “readily recruited” Felicia Konold and
her brother, Cory Konold, from Arizona, to join the group.
*
207. Cory Konold: The lawyer for Cory Konold, 25, insists he went to D.C. only out of concern for his sister’s safety, and is not a member of the Proud Boys, although prosecutors say he is.
In any case, Felicia and Cory’s offered up the same kind of
explanation of the riot as Sen. Shirkey – which is to say, pure deny-reality idiocy. “It couldn’t have been Trump guys,”
Robert Konold told reporters. “I’m thinking it could’ve been more antifa or you
know Democrats wanting to make Trump look bad or something. No normal
Republican would go nuts.”
*
208. William Chrestman: The 47-year-old from Olathe, Kansas has been charged for his alleged participation in the riot. He was one of five Proud Boys whose arrests were announced last week.
At his first court hearing, prosecutors argued that bail for
Mr. Chrestman should be denied. The U.S. Army veteran, they said, would be “a
flight risk and a danger to society” if he were set at liberty.
*
209. Christopher Kuehne: Kuehne, a second Olathe man, was arrested and charged with participating in the riot. He was released on his own recognizance and confined to house arrest, complete with electronic monitoring device. “Kuehne, a retired Marine Corps officer, told the judge that he is being treated at the Department of Veterans Affairs for PTSD and a traumatic brain injury.”
His lawyer noted that her client had served for twenty years in the U.S. Marine Corps, and was awarded a Purple Heart during a tour in Iraq.
*
210. Louis Enrique Colon: Also arrested, Colon is yet another proud member of the Proud Boys.
Here, Robert Konold could start keeping track, with Sen. Shirkey, and any other delusional Trump fans out there:
Trump supporters: 8
Liberal types: 0
*
211: Glenn Wes Ley Croy: The Colorado gentleman has been arrested for joining in the January 6 extravaganza.
According to one witness, a social media account belonging to Croy replied to a question posed by right-wing wild woman, Rep. Lauren Boebert, recently elected to her first term in Congress. “Who is going to be in DC on January 6th to stand with President Donald Trump?” she wondered.
The Twitter account linked to Croy responded, “fellow Coloradan we will be there,” court documents say.
Trump supporters: 9
Liberal types: 0
(We
should probably count Rep. Boebert as #10; but since she hasn’t been arrested,
we’ll let it pass.)
*
212. Leo Brent Bozell IV: Bozell, 41, earned his day in cuffs and his first trip to court after joining the assault on Congress.
NPR describes him as “the son of a prominent conservative activist and media critic.” He was identified after being photographed inside the Capitol wearing a sweatshirt bearing the logo and name of the Hershey Christian Academy, a small private school in Pennsylvania where his children attend. One tipster told the F.B.I. that Bozell had been girls’ basketball coach at the Academy.
NPR further reports:
His father, Leo Brent Bozell III, is the founder and
president of the nonprofit Media Research Center, which describes its mission
as working “to expose and neutralize the propaganda arm of the Left: the
national news media.” The organization runs the NewsBusters website, which
frequently accuses mainstream media organizations – including NPR – of liberal
bias.
On the day of the Capitol insurrection, the elder Bozell said on Fox Business that he condemned
the violence but said, “This is an explosion of pent-up outrage from middle
America.”
“They are furious that they believe this election was stolen,”
he added. “I agree with them.”
In other words, dad didn’t really condemn the violence. Also, he was ill-informed, in his faith in mythic “stolen election” evidence.
Trump supporters: 10
Liberal types: 0
*
“At some point, you’re like, ‘I think this is a bunch of B.S.’”
213. Bruno Cua: Next up, we have Bruno Cua, 18, also arrested for joining the rioters. He’s one of at least 40 accused of assault on a law enforcement officer during the attack.
According to prosecutors, the teen was brought to Washington D.C. by his parents. Bruno explained his motivation beforehand on social media. “President Trump is calling us to FIGHT!” he posted on the right-wing social media website Parler. “This isn’t a joke, this is where and when we make our stand.” He added, “It’s time to take our freedom back the old fashioned way.”
Dad told judges during a bail hearing for his son, that the boy had bought into the Trump lies, and had become convinced there was “all this fraud and the election was stolen.” Now, testifying in hopes of securing his son’s release, Joseph Cua said he recognized that he too had been deceived.
“I share responsibility in that,” he said. “As a middle-aged man, I feel like I can filter a little bit of that with reality, but I felt like as a teenager, he was drinking it in, and just believed it too much.”
Bruno, his father said,
“parroted stuff from other leaders on social media and leaders – like the
president – or the
attorneys like Lin Wood and all these people saying, ‘We have all this information and
everything’s gonna come out.’”
“I myself feel pretty
embarrassed that I think a lot of us felt like this happened and we believed
these people and be disillusioned that there was no big reveal, and nothing
came out. It’s disillusioning, disheartening and embarrassing, quite frankly,”
Joseph Cua said.
“I feel like I maybe should’ve
known a little bit better at my age,” he continued. “At some point, you’re
like, ‘I think this is a bunch of B.S.’”
(This
blogger would argue that that point was in the summer of 2016.)
Dad asked the judge to release his son on bail and confine
him to his home. The judge demurred.
*
214. William Pope: One of a pair of brothers, as recently as October 2020 Pope was
listed as a Republican precinct committee member in Shawnee County.
He has admitted, “I was at the
Capitol [on January 6] to exercise my first amendment rights and remain loyal
to the United States of America.” He said he was not violent during the riot,
and reported himself to the F.B.I. a few days later because “it was the right
thing to do.”
*
215. Michael Pope: The brother of
William, he traveled to Washington D.C. from Idaho, allegedly participated in
the riot, and has been arrested. Not much information about Pope, 32, is
available.
Almost surely a Trump supporter; but technically, we don’t know
yet.
*
Trump
“wants us to make it WILD that’s what he’s saying.”
216. Connie Meggs: The 59-year-old
Florida woman was one of several Oath Keepers who decided to play
insurrectionists on January 6.
Again, that’s a far-right group if you’re keeping track. Ms. Meggs
is no “Democrat.” She and her husband, and #218-221, were all part of a “military
stack” that invaded the Capitol Building that day.
*
217. Kelly Meggs: Prosecutors say Mr. Meggs, 52, when not
rioting, is general manager at a car dealership in Florida. See if you can
figure out who he supports politically and why he went to D.C. on January 6!
In a Facebook message he allegedly wrote, “Trump
said It’s gonna be wild!!!!!!! It’s gonna be wild!!!!!!! He wants
us to make it WILD that’s what he’s saying. He called us all to the
Capitol and wants us to make it wild!!! Sir Yes Sir!!! Gentlemen we
are heading to DC pack your s***!!”
*
218. Bennie Parker: Mr.
Parker, 70, from Ohio was allegedly recruited to go to D.C. by Jessica Marie
Watkins, a leader of the Oath Keepers in the state. According to prosecutors, the
group believes the federal government has been “co-opted by a shadowy
conspiracy that is trying to strip American citizens of their rights.”
We should probably state the obvious here: These people are much too old to be playing soldier.
*
219: Sandra Parker: Bennie’s wife, 60-year-old Sandra, got nervous after the F.B.I. started making dozens of arrests. Watkins texted her reassuringly on January 9, “I’ve been following FBI wanted list, seems they’re only interested in people who destroyed things. I wouldn’t worry about them coming after us.”
Unless, of course, you consider “destroying things” like the
results of a free and fair election, a big deal.
*
220. Laura Steele: Steele,
52, hails from North Carolina. The criminal complaint against this group details
an email sent January 4 from oathkeepers.org, with a subject line, “Call to
Action: Oath Keepers Deploying to DC to Protect Events, Speakers & Attendees
on Jan 5-6: Time to Stand!” As CBS reports, the email noted that the group
would have “well armed and equipped QRF teams on standby,” referring to the
military acronym for “quick reaction force,” in case of a scenario “where the
President calls us up as part of the militia to to [sic] assist him inside
DC.”
*
221. Graydon Young: Young, 59, a Florida resident, joins the growing list of Trump supporters and right-wing kooks (often one and the same) under arrest. And there are certainly others involved in the riot. The email on January 4 notes, “As always, while conducting security operations, we will have some of our men out in ‘grey man’ mode, without identifiable Oath Keepers gear on. For every Oath Keeper you see, there are at least two you don’t see.”
This brings our tally for today to:
Trump supporters: 18
Liberal types: 0
Unknown: 1
*
IMAGINE NOW that you are incredibly ill-informed, like
Michigan’s own Sen. Shirkey. You may be able to convince yourself –and other Trump
lovers – that other Trump lovers would never try to blow up at least one, if
not two branches of the U.S. government. You could argue, as have many GOP
lawmakers and conservative commentators, like Rep. Matt Gaetz, the incredibly dense Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Texas AG Ken Paxton, Televangelist Mark Burns, and assorted hosts at Fox News and Newsmax, that elements from the left fomented and
carried out the attack.
You’d be deluding yourself, of course.
