On Thursday the Washington Post reported that “dozens” of people who are currently on the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Database were in Washington D.C. to participate in the January 6 coup. An unnamed source told the Post that many are suspected white supremacists who had previously been entered into the database following prior interactions with state agents or informants.
The revelation that the domestic intelligence agencies knew that neo-Nazis and fascists were going to be in D.C. further exposes the lying claims of figures such as Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy, who stated the day after the coup that “no intelligence” suggested a threat to the Capitol. There is no doubt that hundreds of people within the sprawling military-intelligence apparatus were aware of who was going to be at the rally and what their intentions were.
Another unnamed official told the Post that some of the individuals suspected of having taken part in the coup were current and former police and military members as well as “senior business executives and middle-aged business owners.”
The leaking of the investigation to the Post points to the raging conflict within the state, substantial sections of which knowingly withheld intelligence information and additional security resources in order to facilitate President Donald Trump’s attempted putsch. So far the Justice Department and the FBI have announced charges against at least 70 individuals and have identified 170 people, a fraction of the thousands who descended on the Capitol, in the hopes of overturning the election.
The crowd included members of the fascist Oath Keepers, III Percenters and Proud Boys. In a video showing an Arizona chapter of the group, members are seen without their easily identifiable black and yellow polos. Instead, in an apparent attempt to hide themselves, the group donned blaze orange knit caps as they filmed themselves preparing to “take the f—ing Capitol.”
In addition to substantial support from high levels of the state, starting from the White House, research conducted by Chainanalysis revealed that over $500,000 in bitcoin digital currency was distributed to 22 fascist and far-right linked online accounts on December 8, 2020. These accounts included the Nazi website Daily Stormer, and anti-immigrant hate group VDARE, as well as America First neo-Nazi, Nick Fuentes.
According to Chainanalysis, the deposits seemed to have emanated from a now-deceased French blogger who lamented online on the “decline” of Western civilization due to the “rejection of our ancestors and our heritage,” phrases popular with the fascist right.
It should be noted that one of the recipients of the digital currency, VDARE, also receives substantial funding from billionaire hedge fund manager Robert Mercer and his daughter, Rebekah Mercer. The Mercers have, unsurprisingly, generously donated to the Republican Party, including $1.5 million to political action committees affiliated with Arizona Republican Party Chairwoman Kelli Ward. Ward, along with Arizona representatives Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar, has ardently supported Trump’s ongoing coup attempt, including by organizing “Stop the Steal” rallies in Arizona and in D.C.
Rebekah Mercer is a close associate of Steve Bannon, the founder of Breitbart News, in which she is a principal investor. On Thursday, Bloomberg reported that Bannon has spoken repeatedly to Trump, with the latter seeking Bannon’s advice on how to overturn his re-election defeat.
As Trump and his billionaire conspirators, sections of the police and the military-intelligence complex continue to plot their next putsch attempt, further arrests point to the intimate involvement of current and former police and military members in the storming of the Capitol.
After being identified on video outside the Capitol last Wednesday, Philadelphia prosecutors asked for bail to be revoked for Navy veteran and founder of “Vets for Trump” Joshua Macias, age 42. Macias was arrested on November 5 for multiple felony and misdemeanor weapons offenses after the FBI was tipped off that he and an accomplice, Antonio LaMotta, were driving up to the city from their residence in Virginia in order to “straighten things out” as vote counting continued following the presidential election.
Following the election, Macias has made several joint appearances at “Stop the Steal” rallies with Virginia state senator and prospective 2021 Republican gubernatorial candidate Amanda Chase. An ardent supporter of the fascist QAnon conspiracy theory, Macias appeared on Facebook live-stream with Chase the day before the rally. Chase introduced Macias as an organizer of the rally, who proceeded to spread fascist conspiracy theories warning, “the enemy is here, it’s not just at the gate, it’s within, we see it everywhere.”
Two police officers from Rocky Mount, Virginia have also been arrested. Thomas Robertson and Jacob Fracker were both inside the Capitol and took a picture together. Robertson shared a statement with WFXR on Monday, January 11, claiming that he was a patriot, adding, “I was let in by Capitol Police, who gave me a bottle of water and told us to stay within the roped areas.” Robertson claimed to be a wounded veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Kevin and Hunter Seefried, father and son, were arrested Thursday in Delaware, after Kevin was identified as the man walking inside the Capitol with the Confederate battle flag. According to police who spoke with the New York Times, Hunter bragged to a co-worker that he and his father were inside the Capitol on January 6.
Recently retired Pennsylvania firefighter Robert Lee Sanford, 55 of Chester, Pennsylvania was charged on Thursday with impeding officers, civil disorder, trespassing, and violent conduct with a dangerous weapon on the restricted grounds of the Capitol, for throwing a fire extinguisher at police as the mob of Trump supporters was descending on the Capitol.
Retired Air Force officer Lt. Colonel Larry Rendall Brock Jr., who was photographed in the Senate Chamber wearing body armor and carrying zip ties, was also arrested this past Sunday. During a Thursday court appearance, Assistant US Attorney Jay Weimer alleged that Brock Jr. intended “to take hostages. He means to kidnap, restrain, perhaps try, perhaps execute members of the US government.”
Another recent retiree arrested this week for his role in the attempted coup was 45-year-old Adam Newbold from Lisbon, Ohio. The Navy has confirmed that Newbold is a retired reserve SEAL special warfare operator. Newbold’s new profession is training civilians and police in “tactical shooting.” In a since-deleted Facebook live stream following after the events last Wednesday, Newbold boasted that he was “proud” of his actions that day, adding that he hoped it would overturn the election and that those inside the Capitol should “think twice about what they’re doing.”
Newbold’s action mirrors the words spoken by incoming North Carolina Republican representative Madison Cawthorn, who was carrying a weapon with him inside the Capitol the day of the insurrection. Cawthorn, who previously claimed that visiting Adolf Hitler’s Eagles Nest retreat in the Bavarian mountains was on his “bucket list for a while,” spoke the morning of the coup attempt, remarking that, “this crowd has some fight in it. ... The Republicans hiding and not fighting, they are trying to silence your voice.”
Cawthorn also spoke at a Turning Point USA event in December in which he urged attendees to “lightly threaten” lawmakers if they failed to support Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud.
Another notable arrest was of Robert Keith Packer, the fascist who was wearing a sweatshirt with a skull and crossbones that read “Camp Auschwitz.” The bottom of Packer’s shirt read “Work brings freedom,” a rough translation of “Arbeit macht frei,” the German phrase that greeted the 1.1 million Jewish people who were killed at the concentration camp during World War II.
The US Army is still “investigating” the activity of 30-year-old Captain Emily Rainey. Rainey admitted to organizing and leading 100 members of the “Moore County Citizens for Freedom” to D.C. on the 6th, however, she claims she didn’t enter the Capitol. Rainey is assigned to the 4th Psychological Operations Group at Fort Bragg, according to a spokesman for the 1st Special Forces Command. Rainey gained a substantial online following after posting videos on social media in May showing herself ripping caution tape off of a playground set that had been closed due to COVID-19 health restrictions.