Posted on 09/07/2021 4:03:43 PM PDT by RandFan
Members of Congress and law enforcement are bracing for potential security threats on Sept. 18 when a “Justice for J6” rally is planned to support the more than 570 people charged with crimes related to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
The Capitol Police are expected to present their security plan to the Capitol Police Board this week, according to a congressional source, while the Metropolitan Police Department is also expected to ramp up its presence for the planned rally near the Capitol’s west front.
The group organizing the rally, Look Ahead America, is led by Matt Braynard, who served as a campaign staffer for former President Trump. About 300 to 500 attendees are expected at the event, including members of far-right extremist groups such as the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, according to multiple reports.
Several members of those two groups have been charged with criminal offenses related to the Jan. 6 insurrection, when hundreds of people invaded the Capitol, forced the evacuation of Congress and delayed the counting of the Electoral College vote. More than 140 police officers were injured in the riot, which led to five deaths.
It's not yet clear if any members of Congress will be in attendance, but some prominent far-right House Republicans have offered support and sympathy to people facing charges for their actions on Jan. 6. Some have also cast Ashli Babbitt, who was fatally shot by a Capitol Police officer as she came close to breaching the House chamber, as a martyr.
GOP Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), Matt Gaetz (Fla.), Louie Gohmert (Texas) and Paul Gosar (Ariz.) held a July 27 news conference outside the Justice Department to protest the treatment of people arrested in connection to Jan. 6. The event, which was interrupted by counterprotestors, took place the same day a House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack heard testimony from officers on the physical and mental abuse they took that day.
Greene, Gaetz and Gohmert also tried to visit the D.C. Department of Corrections to personally view the Jan. 6 defendants’ conditions but were barred from entry.
Late last month, Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) described the defendants currently in law enforcement custody as “political hostages” and “political prisoners” who are being detained to deter future protests.
“The big problem is we don't actually know where all the political prisoners are,” Cawthorn said. “And so, if we were to actually be able to go and try and bust them out — and let me tell you, the reason why they're taking these political prisoners is because they're trying to make an example, because they don't want to see the mass protests going on in Washington.”
A spokesman for Cawthorn later sought to clarify that he only “wants due process for the prisoners” and “was not advocating for any form of illegal action, only that they receive full due process.”
Some of this rhetoric, and the promotion of the conspiracy that President Biden wasn’t legitimately elected, has infuriated other lawmakers — including some Republicans — still shaken by the events of Jan. 6.
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), one of the most outspoken critics of Republicans who have backed Trump’s false claims about the election, harshly criticized plans for the Sept. 18 event.
“Let's talk about what this rally celebrates. It celebrates cop killers,” he said in an interview with CNN. “And you know what, this is America. They can peacefully assemble. They can celebrate whatever they want.”
Swalwell also said Capitol Police, who have come under intense criticism for their preparations for Jan. 6, must be ready for Sept. 18.
“We just have to make sure that if they are ready to get violent, that we're ready again in a better way than on Jan. 6 to defend the Capitol,” Swalwell said.
While the Sept. 18 rally is expected to be smaller than what occurred on Jan. 6, experts are encouraging security planners to take it seriously.
“This is coming eight months after” Jan. 6, said Brian Levin, a criminal justice professor and director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.
“It’s a different scenario, but we’re getting a much more isolated and also angry and conspiratorial sliver that is not only labeling an election as stolen but is also labeling violent criminal defendants as political prisoners, and that's another marker of extremism.”
Congress is not scheduled to be in session on Sept. 18, which falls on a Saturday, but the Capitol Hill community has been on edge since Jan. 6.
In April, a man rammed his car into a security barricade, killing one Capitol Police officer and injuring another, although the suspect died before a clear motive was established.
And last month, a man drove his truck onto the sidewalk in front of the Library of Congress across the street from the Capitol and claimed he had a bomb. During the tense five-hour standoff, the suspect posted a video to Facebook where he railed against Biden and claimed that “the revolution is on.”
The Capitol Police declined to comment Tuesday on any specific security plans for Sept. 18. But Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said the department is “closely monitoring” the event and expressed confidence that “the work we are doing now will make sure our officers have what they need to keep everyone safe.”
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) is also planning an “increased presence around the city” where demonstrations will take place on Sept. 18 and may close off some streets, a spokesperson said.
Levin said the Capitol Police should be focused on developing a plan that includes securing the perimeter around the Capitol, ideally maintaining some distance between protesters and the building, and avoiding missteps on Jan. 6 by ensuring communication between commanders and officers as well as between the outside entities brought in to help.
“I think here the risk is not doing anything. You need responsive backup from across agencies — you can't just have MPD. You have to have multiple mutual aid going on, planning across multiple agencies, and I think you’re going to have that now,” he said.
Braynard has urged attendees to “be respectful and kind to all law enforcement officers,” and he discouraged anyone from bringing signs or clothing related to a specific political candidate or the election’s legitimacy
“I invite you to make your own homemade signs demanding justice for these political prisoners, demanding justice for Ashli Babbitt. But we are focused like a laser on this and only this cause on this date at that rally,” Braynard said in a video posted to the event’s website.
Messages on the Proud Boys' Telegram account have discouraged members from going to the rally, with one stating that “we will not be attending this guaranteed disaster.”
“..He endorsed Biden as president...”
I think you have him mixed up with someone else. Cawthorn spoke at the Trump nominating convention.
This post Jan. 6 episode is all Pelosi’s doing because she turned down a resquest twice to bring in more officers but she declined. Secondly, she wants to blame President Trump as a co conspiritor in the entire episode.
“because they don’t want to see the mass protests going on in Washington”
Not a good reason.
That’s where the prisoners are being held. I doubt a cornfield in Iowa would have the same impact.
thank God for Matt Braynard. money well spent.
Let’s all show up in antifa or BLM gear. Hey, we could flip a few cop cars, burned down a few stores, and then do some early Christmas looting🤗
I wouldn’t go although it’s fairly close. However, I’ve thought about it and should any of the parents of the 13 who died in Afghanistan decide to go in the future, They may find me there supporting them. I have some health issues, so it’s difficult for me to go anywhere. That was why I didn’t go on 1/6. I had contemplated it for a while. I really wanted to go. But, realized I’d never be able to handle the walk. It was disappointing to come to that conclusion. I know quite a few who did go. None of them had any problems.
Don’t be surprised to find some of those 13 gold star parents front and center in the rally.
..we had an insurrection? Was it anything like the Supreme Court nomination insurrection when women were literally clawing the doors trying to shut it down?
Remember, the same people who abandoned American’s and turned over an entire country to violent terrorist, a country complete with hundreds of billions in our tax paid weapons/equipment, have now kept these non-violent individuals in cages for about 9 months now.
The contrast should be enough to make people recoil in disgust.
Both situations really upset me and warrant attention. I’m not able to go on the date of the 1/6 prisoners. And since I can only handle one event, I’m holding out for the possibility of something else.
It’s time to stop allowing them to manipulate us by not demonstrating.
That's right...and that should be your first clue what will happen if you're dumb enough to go back there again.
There are plenty of ways to make an impact without engaging Pelosi's storm troopers directly.
Why lie?
Cawthorn never “endorsed Biden” for President.
You misquote me. I did not write Cawthorn endorsed Biden for president.
I wrote (post 2 of this thread):
"He endorsed Biden as president"
Very different.
Given your misquote I could do a tit-for-tat and accuse you of lying, but won't. I figure it was an honest mistake on your part.
Now some facts.
For those who don't know or remember, in late January Cawthorn proclaimed Biden's legitimacy and stated the election was not fraudulent.
"Yes, I think I would say that the election was not fraudulent. You know, the Constitution allowed for us to be able to push back as much as we could and I did that to the amount of the constitutional limits that I had at my disposal. So now I would say that Joseph R. Biden is our president.""So when I contested to the election, that was within the constitutional guidelines that the framers had set up. But after I've done that and the electors and the delegates from each state elected Joe Biden as our president, I respect the office. He is my president, and I want to work with him to make sure that we can bring some meaningful change to the American people."
Since Biden's inauguration, Cawthorn has signed onto a letter along with 16 other GOP House freshmen, saying they look forward to working with Biden. Notably, Cawthorn is the youngest member of Congress in modern history, according to US House records, at just 25 years old.
Above quotes and excerpt are from a Jan. 24, 2021 news report on an interview he gave with CNN
He endorsed Biden as president, called Biden his president, stated the election was not fraudulent and stated he wanted to work with Biden.
A Free Republic post on Cawfield kowtowing on CNN was made at the time, which can be seen here:
Why did he acquiesce in this way? Note that about a week before this complete kowtow to Biden on CNN, the Democrats and Pelosi were threatening to kick him out of congress. Posted here at FR:
Democrats pressure Pelosi to expel Madison Cawthorn [North Carolina]
So we can see that at the first sign of trouble he rolled over and showed his belly to the democrats.
He is saying the right things today, but he has already shown to Pelosi and the Dems that when push comes to shove he will back down and toe the line.
Is Biden the current President?
“Is Biden the current President?”
No.
Who is the President then?
“Who is the President then?”
If anyone is president, it is Trump.
Now, why are you asking these questions?
I pointed out that Cawfield endorsed Biden as president you objected but now you yourself are defending and endorsing Biden as a legitimate President. So you are acknowledging what I said in post two was accurate. That’s good.
Cawfield stated it was not a fraudulent election.
Do you agree.
The Constitution doesn’t allow the office of President to be vacant.
If Trump is the current President, why isn’t he in Washington performing the duties of President?
Oops, “be” should be “remain.”
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