Eliana Willis

Four Oath Keepers convicted of seditious conspiracyMembers of anti-government militia found guilty for roles in January 6 attack at the US Capitol Four members of the Oath Keepers anti-government militia were convicted on Monday of seditious conspiracy relating to the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the US Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump, after the second major trial accusing far-right extremists of plotting to forcibly keep the former US president in power.The verdict against Joseph Hackett of Sarasota, Florida, Roberto Minuta of Prosper, Texas, David Moerschel of Punta Gorda, Florida, and Edward Vallejo of Phoenix, Arizona, came a few weeks after a different jury convicted the group’s leader, Stewart Rhodes, in the mob’s attack that delayed the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory over Republican Trump.Proud Boys on defensive at sedition trial haunted by absent TrumpRead moreThe convictions were another major victory for the Department of Justice, which is also trying to secure sedition verdicts against the former leader of the hard-right, violent, all-male nationalist group the Proud Boys and four associates. The trial against Enrique Tarrio and his lieutenants opened earlier this month in Washington DC and is expected to last several weeks.They are some of the most serious cases brought so far in the sweeping investigation into the Capitol attack, which continues to grow two years after the riot. The justice department has brought nearly 1,000 cases and the tally increases by the week.Defense attorneys sought to downplay violent messages as mere bluster and said the Oath Keepers came to Washington to provide security at events before the riot.They seized on prosecutors’ lack of evidence that the Oath Keepers had an explicit plan to storm the Capitol before January 6 and told jurors that the extremists who attacked the Capitol acted spontaneously like thousands of other rioters.Rhodes founded the Oath Keepers, whose members include current and retired military personnel, law enforcement officers and first responders, in 2009.Members have showed up, often heavily armed, at protests and political events including demonstrations following the May 2020 murder of George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis.TopicsUS Capitol attackThe far rightUS crimenewsReuse this content More

Three active-duty US marines arrested for participating in Capitol attackMen were taken into custody on Wednesday, bringing the number of US military members charged in connection to insurrection to 12 Three active-service US marines, all with ties to intelligence work, were arrested this week for taking part in the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the US Capitol, according to federal documents newly unsealed.The men, all long-serving, were taken into custody on Wednesday on four charges, bringing to 12 the number of US military members charged in connection with the deadly insurrection by supporters of outgoing president Donald Trump as they tried to prevent the certification by Congress of his defeat by Joe Biden. The news was first reported by military.com.The three were named as Micah Coomer, Joshua Abate and Dodge Dale Hellonen. According to the documents, unsealed on Thursday, they spent more than an hour together wandering around the Capitol rotunda, and at one point placed “a red Maga hat on one of the statues to take photos with it”, indicating Trump’s Make America Great Again election slogan.Investigators noted social media posts by Coomer, including one where he stated he was “glad to be apart [sic] of history”, and a chat with another Instagram user in which he explained he was there because he was “waiting for the boogaloo”, a term popular with rightwing extremists and white supremacists to signify a race-related civil war.Marine corps records provided to military.com show all three have been enlisted for more than four years, have good conduct medals, and that each works in “demanding jobs” tied to the intelligence community. At least one holds a “significant” security clearance.In a statement to the outlet, a spokesperson said the service is “aware of an investigation and the allegations” and said it was “fully cooperating with appropriate authorities in support of the investigation”.The men face misdemeanor charges including trespass, disruptive and disorderly conduct and obstructing government business. According to the 13-page document compiled by FBI special agent Kelsey Randall of the agency’s joint terrorism taskforce, investigators “learned” of Coomer’s social media posts and, after obtaining a search warrant, identified the two others from images contained in them.Security footage from the Capitol showed the three entering the building together through a door near the Senate chamber, and moving further inside as part of a mob of dozens of others, many wearing Trump’s signature Make America Great Again red caps.Additional proof came from cell phone records showing the three were in the building, Randall wrote..TopicsUS Capitol attackUS militarynewsReuse this content More

‘Stop the Steal’ campaign founder’s Twitter account reinstatedAli Alexander, who originated campaign based on lie that inspired the January 6 attack, was banned on 10 January 2021 The founder of the campaign that promoted the lie that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump has had his Twitter account reinstated.Ali Alexander, who originated the “Stop the Steal” campaign that inspired the January 6 insurrection, was permanently banned from Twitter on 10 January following the Capitol riot.Upon his account being reactivated, Alexander tweeted his thanks to the Twitter CEO, Elon Musk: “Thank you [Elon Musk]. Now, bring everyone else.”In a follow-up tweet, Alexander dedicated his account to “Jesus Christ, Love, @J6Families, YE, and beating up naughty Republicans”, reported the Daily Beast.Since being banned, Alexander posted on the far-right platform Truth Social and claimed credit for the Capitol riot as the “main organizer”.The Enemy made false promises to our opponents.Their murderous lust for our destruction made them greedy.As a result, they’ve destroyed faith in already failing institutions and forced Twitter to go private. Normalizing us.Thank you @elonmusk.Now, bring everyone else.— Ali Alexander (@ali) January 9, 2023
On the day of the insurrection, Alexander posted several tweets about the protest and subsequent riot, including a message at 4.13am reading: “First official day of the rebellion.”Alexander also posted an image of 6 January attendees marching to the US Capitol, captioned: “200,000 marching to the US Capitol.”While Alexander has not faced criminal charges for his role in the 6 January events, his name appeared more than 100 times in the House committee’s final report, most relating to his false claims that the 2020 election was illegitimate.Alexander also responded to a subpoena to be questioned for the Department of Justice’s criminal inquiry into the January 6 attack, among the first high-profile pro-Trump activists to do so.Shortly after his Twitter reinstatement, Alexander celebrated a similar riot that took place in Brazil by supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro. In a series of posts on Truth Social, Alexander wrote that he “endorsed the real people of Brazil” and not the “fake CIA backed rigged election”, adding: “The National Supreme Court in Brazil is illegitimate and the most corrupt part of the country … Do whatever is necessary!”TopicsUS Capitol attackTwitternewsReuse this content More

Federal prosecutors subpoena Giuliani over Trump campaign paymentsThe order, issued in November, also asks the former New York mayor to provide testimony Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor, who helped to amplify Donald Trump’s false claims about widespread fraud in the 2020 election, has been subpoenaed by federal prosecutors seeking documents about payments he received from Trump or his presidential campaign, a person familiar with the matter said on Monday.Grand jury in Georgia’s Trump 2020 election investigation finishes workRead moreThe subpoena, which was issued in November, also asks Giuliani to provide testimony, said the person, who declined to be identified as they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.The nature of the inquiry by the US attorney in Washington DC, which began before special counsel Jack Smith was appointed to oversee investigations into Trump, remains largely under wraps.Giuliani, who has served as Trump’s personal attorney, did not respond to requests by Reuters for comment.A spokeswoman for the US attorney for the District of Columbia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The source said the subpoena sought, among other things, copies of any retainer agreements between Trump and Giuliani, or the Trump campaign and Giuliani, and records of payments and who made those payments.In December, a District of Columbia attorney ethics committee said Giuliani violated at least one attorney ethics rule in his work on a failed lawsuit by Trump challenging the 2020 election results.Giuliani’s New York state law license was suspended in June 2021 after a state appeals court found he had made “demonstrably false and misleading” statements that widespread voter fraud undermined the 2020 election won by his Democratic opponent, Joe Biden.TopicsRudy GiulianiDonald TrumpWashington DCNew YorkUS elections 2020newsReuse this content More

The Republican leader Kevin McCarthy was elected as speaker of the US House of Representatives in a dramatic late-night vote, after quelling a days-long revolt from a bloc of far-right conservatives to finally capture the gavel on a historic 15th attempt. McCarthy’s ascension to speaker came after 14 defeats and a string of concessions to ultraconservative lawmakers that would significantly weaken his power while strengthening their influence over the party’s new House majority. After winning over most of the holdouts earlier on Friday, McCarthy withstood a surprise defeat on the 14th ballot later that evening and finally clinched the gavel on the next round with the slimmest majority, just 216 votes, in the early hours of Saturday morning

Kevin McCarthy wins House speaker bid after gruelling, 15-vote saga
Kevin McCarthy narrowly loses 14th House speaker vote in stunning setback More

In a remarkable effort to salvage his candidacy after the final votes were tallied, Kevin McCarthy strode to the back of the chamber to personally lobby two defectors, Republicans Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Matt Gaetz of Florida, both of whom voted ‘present’. If one were to change their vote and back him for speaker, McCarthy would reach the 217 votes he needed. Both remained resolute. Tensions boiled as a crowd swelled around them. There was finger pointing and yelling, and one lawmaker physically restrained a colleague who appeared to charge at Gaetz

Kevin McCarthy wins House speaker bid after gruelling, 15-vote saga
Kevin McCarthy narrowly loses 14th House speaker vote in stunning setback More

Biden salutes January 6 heroes ‘who did not flinch’ in medal ceremony The president spoke with passion about police officers and election officials who held the line on the second anniversary of the attempted insurrectionJoe Biden has marked the second anniversary of the January 6 insurrection by awarding medals to heroes who “did not flinch” when the US Capitol came under attack and warning that democracy cannot be taken for granted.The US president on Friday awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to 14 people, some posthumously, and spoke with passion – and flashes of humour – at a White House ceremony.Democrats commemorate January 6 attack with tears and silence at US CapitolRead moreThe event in the East Room, against a backdrop of seven flags and portraits of the founding US president and first lady, George and Martha Washington, struck a sharp contrast with the Capitol itself where Republicans were struggling for a fourth day to elect a speaker of the House of Representatives.Biden had commemorated the first anniversary of the riot by visiting the Capitol itself and denouncing former president Donald Trump, whose supporters staged the January 6 attack after he urged them to fight like hell. This time, he devoted most of his remarks to praising the heroes of that day who held the line.But his sense of rage at the attempted coup was undimmed.“Two years ago on January 6, our democracy was attacked,” the president said. “There’s no other way of saying it. The US Capitol was breached, which had never happened before in the history of the United States of America, even during the civil war.”He added: “All of it – all of it – was fueled by the lies” Trump told about being robbed of victory over Biden in the 2020 election.“But on this day two years ago, our democracy held because we the people – as the constitution refers to us – we the people did not flinch,” Biden said. “We the people endured. We the people prevailed.”Biden described the honourees, who entered the room to standing ovations and cheers, as “a remarkable group of Americans who embodied the best before, during and after January 6, 2021”.They included the former Arizona house speaker Rusty Bowers and the Michigan secretary of state, Jocelyn Benson, who resisted pressure to overturn the 2020 election results in their states. They also included Capitol police officer Eugene Goodman, who diverted rioters from the Senate floor while members were evacuating, and the Georgia election worker Ruby Freeman, falsely accused by Trump of election fraud and forced to flee her home after death threats.There were also awards for Capitol police officers Harry Dunn, Caroline Edwards and Sgt Aquilino Gonell; DC police officer Daniel Hodges; and former DC police officer Michael Fanone.Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick was awarded a posthumous medal. Washington’s chief medical examiner ruled that Sicknick died of natural causes following multiple strokes after the attack.“He lost his life protecting the citadel of democracy,” Biden said before telling Sicknick’s family directly: “I know you’re proud of the honour being bestowed on Brian. But I also know this difficult moment brings back everything as if it happened this very day.”There were two late additions to Friday’s list: Capitol police officer Howard Liebengood and Washington DC police officer Jeffrey Smith, both of whom took their own lives in the aftermath of the insurrection. Biden acknowledged that for family members of the fallen, the honour was “bittersweet”.He also noted that many of those present had testified to the House panel investigating the Capitol attack about what they were seeing and feeling. “It’s not an exaggeration to say America owes you – owes you all, I really mean that – a debt of gratitude,” Biden said. “One that we can never fully repay unless we live up to what you did. What you did was truly consequential.”Trump’s supporters attacked police, smashed through barricades and entered the Capitol on 6 January 2021 in a failed effort to prevent congressional certification of Biden’s 2020 election victory. Trump, who has announced another bid for the presidency in 2024, continues to claim falsely that only widespread voting fraud cost him the 2020 election.The House committee investigating the attack said last month that Trump should face criminal charges for his role in provoking the violence.Biden did not mention Trump or Republicans who rally around the Make America Great Again (Maga) slogan by name but cautioned: “We face an inflection point in our nation’s history. On January 6, it’s a reminder there’s nothing guaranteed about our democracy.”The Presidential Citizens Medal, created by President Richard Nixon in 1969, is the country’s second-highest civilian honour after the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is awarded to those who “performed exemplary deeds of service for their country or their fellow citizens”.TopicsUS Capitol attackThe US politics sketchUS politicsJoe BidennewsReuse this content More

In a speech at the  White House, Joe Biden paid tribute to the law enforcement officers who defended the US Capitol against a violent mob of Donald Trump-incited insurrectionists two years ago

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