Videos show ally of Marjorie Taylor Greene among mob inside Capitol during January 6 riot https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/24/politics/kfile-marjorie-taylor-greene-ally-us-capitol/index.html Footage from the January 6 riot at the US Capitol shows a close ally of Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene inside the building. CNN previously reported that Anthony Aguero, a conservative live-streamer, activist and associate of Greene, said on video following the riot that he had been among those who entered the building. At the time of that February report, Aguero declined to answer if he had been inside when pressed by CNN. He claimed videos later posted to social media accounts from both inside the Capitol and outside were not his, but screen recorded from others. The publicly posted videos of the riot reviewed by CNN's KFile are now the first visual confirmation that Aguero went inside the building. Aguero previously confirmed to CNN that he was at the Capitol on January 6 and said he was an "independent journalist" there reporting the events. Aguero, however, appears to have never uploaded any footage he took inside the Capitol to Facebook or Instagram. And in videos previously reported on by CNN, he can be heard chanting "heave ho" as rioters were attempting to break in on the West Side of the Capitol. In a comment, Aguero wrote "MAGA" under the video. Later, Aguero can be heard chanting "our house" among the Capitol mob on the East Side of the building. In a video immediately filmed following the riot, Aguero said "a message was sent." He later described those who broke in as "patriots," and commented "#PatriotsSaveAmerica2021! Not Antifa/BLM!!!" in a since-removed comment made immediately following the ransacking of the Capitol by rioters. The FBI said last month that it had received nearly 200,000 digital tips from the public related to the Capitol riot, mainly from people who documented it. The FBI previously declined to comment on whether it was investigating Aguero in an email to CNN. Aguero declined to comment and Greene's office did not respond to requests for comment. Greene, the freshman congresswoman with a history of promoting dangerous and fringe conspiracies and comments, encouraged the big lie that the election was stolen from former President Donald Trump by voting to object to the election's certification. She fanned the flames ahead of the Capitol insurrection by telling her supporters on Twitter to "FIGHT. FOR. TRUMP." On Friday, Democratic Rep. Jimmy Gomez introduced a resolution to expel Greene from Congress, suggesting that she "advocated violence against our peers, the Speaker and our government." In a statement last week to CNN, Greene commented on the resolution, saying "House Democrats have declared war on House Republican Women," adding that "Democrats are trying overturn the will of the People who voted for both myself and Congresswoman Miller-Meeks." Footage shows Aguero inside the Capitol, just inside and just outside the Rotunda near what are known as the Columbus Doors. The historic bronze doors on the East Front of the Capitol, facing the Supreme Court, were first installed in 1863 and sustained damage from rioters who broke into the building through them. In one video, posted on Instagram, Aguero is briefly seen inside the Rotunda among rioters as they are held back by police. In another video, Aguero appears to be exiting the Rotunda, though it is unclear where he goes because he disappears into the crowd. It is not clear how long Aguero was in the Capitol, or where he entered. Some protesters broke in through the Columbus Doors during the riot. Later, other footage shows Aguero standing outside the building, near the doors. The exact timing of those videos is unclear, though one publicly posted video lists the time Aguero was exiting the Rotunda as just after 3 p.m ET. The first rioters entered the building around 2:15pm on the West Side of the building and a video posted by Aguero shows himcheering on what appears to be the initial break in on the West Side of the Capitol facing the National Mall. Footage shows the Columbus Doors were first forced open around what is time stamped as 2:30 p.m. A video posted by Aguero on Facebook on January 6 shows him standing outside the East Front of the Capitol chanting "our house," among the rioters. In a since-deleted livestream from another conservative live-streamer, Aguero is seen standing near the steps on what appears to be the eastern side of the Capitol after the Capitol was breached. In videos posted following the Capitol riot, Aguero repeatedly boasted about entering the building and attacked those who claimed it was the work of "Antifa." "A message was sent," Aguero said in the video streamed live on January 6 while walking away from the Capitol on Pennsylvania Avenue following the riot. "These politicians are not going to continue to get away with the abuse as they've been doing. We will continue to press on these individuals." "The National Guard has just been called in," he continued. "A woman was shot in the face earlier. There was blood all over the floor. I recorded it for y'all. I could not go live during the whole event because the signal was either jammed purposely or there was just too many, too many people out there. Guys, I was able to make it inside the chambers and I have footage that I'm going to provide for you guys as we made our way in there." Greene and Aguero have worked closely together over the years on causes such as immigration and the U.S.-Mexico border wall and have attended pro-Trump rallies together. In many since-deleted videos saved by CNN's KFile, Greene repeatedly calls Aguero "amazing" and a "friend." On social media, Aguero has called Greene "one of my closest friends." Prior to January's riot at the Capitol, Greene was photographed with Aguero in Washington at the "March for Trump" post-election rally, also known as the Million MAGA March, on November 14, 2020, where Greene spoke. Following Greene's speech, Aguero accompanied Greene off the stage in a video of the rally. A November tweet of the pair at the rally was liked by Greene.
Ken Paxton refuses to release messages about attendance at pro-Trump rally before Jan. 6 insurrection https://www.texastribune.org/2021/03/25/texas-ken-paxton-trump-insurrection/ The Texas attorney general's office is attempting to withhold all messages Ken Paxton sent or received while in Washington for the pro-Donald Trump rally that devolved into a riot at the U.S. Capitol. Several news organizations in Texas have requested copies of the attorney general's work-related communications. The Texas Public Information Act guarantees the public's right to government records — even if those records are stored on personal devices or online accounts of public officials. After Paxton's office refused to release copies of his emails and text messages, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, The Austin American-Statesman, The Dallas Morning News, The Houston Chronicle, and The San Antonio Express-News are working together in an effort to obtain the documents and review Paxton's open-records practices. The news outlets discovered that Paxton's office, which is supposed to enforce the state's open records laws, has no policy governing the release of work-related messages stored on Paxton's personal devices. It is unclear whether the office reviews Paxton’s email accounts and phones to look for requested records, or whether the attorney general himself determines what to turn over without any outside checks. Paxton is now facing some of the most intense public scrutiny of his career. The Republican attorney general is reportedly under federal investigation for allegedly abusing his office to help a campaign donor. He also led a failed attempt to overturn the presidential election, joining with other GOP attorneys general in a lawsuit seeking to invalidate swing state victories by Democrat Joe Biden. A spokesperson for the Office of the Attorney General said the agency follows the Texas Administrative Code, which specifies how long agencies have to hold on to records but is distinct from the open records law. He did not answer reporters’ questions about whether Paxton is given free rein to determine which of his communications are public and which are confidential under these rules. The Washington trip On Jan. 6, Paxton spoke at the pro-Trump rally in Washington. Appearing with his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, the attorney general touted his unsuccessful legal effort to overturn the presidential election. “What we have in President Trump is a fighter," Paxton told the crowd of Trump supporters. "And I think that’s why we’re all here. We will not quit fighting. We’re Texans, we’re Americans, and the fight will go on.” Members of the crowd, stirred up by false claims of voter fraud, later stormed the Capitol, fought with riot police and threatened lawmakers. Five people died in the violence, including a Capitol Police officer. Paxton later falsely blamed the violence on antifa, a left-wing, anti-fascist movement, and claimed Trump supporters weren't responsible for the insurrection. Federal prosecutors have charged more than 300 people in connection with the riot and alleged that some have ties to white supremacy groups. FBI Director Christopher Wray said investigators found no evidence that members of antifa attacked the Capitol. Amid a massive FBI investigation into the Capitol riot, the public has been eager to understand why and how their elected officials attended the rally. Paxton has refused to release his communications about the event, which could illuminate his real-time reaction to the riot, who booked him as a speaker for the rally and who covered his travel expenses. As Texas attorney general, Paxton oversees an office of lawyers who determine which records are public or confidential under the law. Any government body in Texas, from police departments to the governor’s office, must seek the agency’s approval to withhold records from the public. The Houston Chronicle and The Dallas Morning News have requested all of Paxton's messages from Jan. 5 to Jan. 11. Lauren Downey, the public information coordinator at the Office of the Attorney General, said she didn’t need to release the records because they are confidential attorney-client communications. Downey sought confirmation from the agency’s open records division, arguing the messages included communications between the attorney general's executive leadership and its criminal prosecution division to discuss litigation, as well as texts between Paxton and a lawyer in the attorney general's office regarding "legal services to the state." The open records division has 45 business days to issue a ruling on whether the communications should be open to the public. That decision is pending. James Hemphill, a lawyer and open records expert who serves as a board member of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas, said the records described by Downey appear to fall under confidential communications. But it's odd, he added, that Paxton would have no other routine emails or texts during that six-day time frame that could be released. "It would seem unusual for every single communication made by any kind of lawyer to be subject to attorney-client privilege," Hemphill said, cautioning he hasn't seen the records himself. Downey also told the Chronicle that the attorney general's office does not have any written policy or procedures for releasing public documents stored on Paxton's personal devices or accounts. No responsive records The Morning News filed several other requests for Paxton’s communications regarding his Washington trip, including messages sent over encrypted apps. The agency said there were no public records that fit that description. When the newspaper asked for Paxton’s communications with his senior adviser and an executive assistant who usually plan official travel, Downey said, yet again, there were no records to release. “The (Office of the Attorney General) did not coordinate or pay for General Paxton's trip to Washington D.C., in early January. Thus, our office has no information responsive to your request,” Downey said. Paxton has not answered questions about who paid for his trip. In a recent legislative hearing, the attorney general did not directly answer questions from state senators about whether he spent any taxpayer money on the travel. "I didn’t spend money personally,” he said. Paxton added he had official business in Washington D.C., the week of the rally, when he met with federal officials about a Medicaid program. “I had a state purpose,” Paxton said. “The next day I had meetings at the White House. ...That’s how I spent most of my time.” Paxton’s agency has released other top staffers’ communications related to the trip. First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster also traveled to Washington D.C., that week in January, according to calendars and travel documents The Morning News obtained through public records requests. The state paid for Webster’s travel. The agency released some of Webster’s emails and texts from that month, including logistical planning for the Washington trip. The Utah trip and more In other recent instances, the responses from Paxton’s agency raised questions about the attorney general’s own record-keeping practices. For example, The Morning News requested communications from Utah about the attorney general’s trip to that state last month during the winter power outages in Texas. In response, Utah officials released a screenshot of a few texts exchanged between Paxton, Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes and a third unnamed individual discussing their plans. The messages were taken from the unnamed individual’s phone, not Reyes’ or Paxton’s. When the newspaper made the same request to the Texas attorney general’s office, officials turned over a copy of the screenshot that Utah provided — not one of the exchange on Paxton’s device. Downey said Paxton provided the record, but she did not answer questions about how Paxton searched his accounts or whether anyone in the office confirmed the results of the records search. “The Office of the Attorney General is in full compliance with the Public Information Act,” Downey said. A Morning News reporter also texted a work-related question to Paxton's cellphone in February and the newspaper later requested all text messages related to state business sent to that number on that same day. The Texas Attorney General's office said there were no messages. When asked why the Morning News reporter’s text wasn’t turned over, a spokesperson suggested they did not need to keep it. “Unsolicited and unwelcome text messages to personal phones do not fall under the records retention law,” said Alejandro Garcia, the attorney general's communications director. Sarah Swanson, general counsel for the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, said state agencies are responsible for adopting their own records-retention schedules. But if texts are exchanged while conducting state business, Swanson said those messages are considered government records and might need to be kept for an "appropriate amount of time," depending on an agency's policy. Garcia did not answer follow-up questions about how they determine which text messages are unwelcome or unsolicited. But the agency’s own rules include a clear warning: Don't destroy any records subject to public information requests.
Trump lies about Capitol riot by claiming his supporters were 'hugging and kissing' cops https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/26/politics/donald-trump-january-6-rioters-arrests/index.html Former President Donald Trump on Thursday attempted to whitewash the history of the January 6 Capitol riot by pushing the false suggestion that his supporters were "hugging and kissing" police officers and posed "zero threat" despite widespread violence, injuries to law enforcement officers and five deaths. It's an outrageous attempt by Trump to rewrite the history of the insurrection, which he stoked by repeatedly and falsely claiming the 2020 election was stolen from him. There is no evidence of widespread fraud, but Trump and many of his conservative allies in the media and on Capitol Hill have continued to push the "big lie" regardless. Calling into Fox News on Thursday night, Trump was asked if he was concerned about the US Capitol's beefed up security, including razor-wire fencing, which he derided as "disgraceful" and a "political maneuver." "It was zero threat, right from the start, it was zero threat. Look, they went in, they shouldn't have done it. Some of them went in, and they are hugging and kissing the police and the guards, you know, they had great relationships," Trump told Fox News' Laura Ingraham. "A lot of the people were waved in, and then they walked in and they walked out." Trump's latest whitewash attempt comes after the world has been presented with reams of video evidence of the violence that broke out on January 6, criminal charges filed against participants, law enforcement officials testimony, police officers' accounts of the violence, and lawmakers' descriptions of the fear they experienced that day. Trump appeared to suggest that some of the rioters should face repercussions, but quickly pivoted to attacking the leftist movement Antifa, a familiar target of his that he has often cited to draw a false equivalency in downplaying crimes committed in his name. "They're persecuting a lot of those people, and some of them should be -- some things should happen to them. But when I look at Antifa in Washington, even, what they did to Washington and what they did to other locations and the destruction, and frankly, the killing and the beating up of people, and nothing happens to them whatsoever. Why aren't they going after Antifa?" Trump told Fox News. Ingraham then interjected. "But you would say that people who commit crimes, regardless of what their political affiliations are, should be prosecuted?" "Absolutely. What you said is exactly right," Trump replied. The mob of pro-Trump supporters who stormed the US Capitol intended to stop Congress from certifying President Joe Biden's win in the 2020 election. Many rioters violently clashed with Capitol police, using various weapons, as they pushed through barriers to breach the Capitol complex. The riot left five people dead, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, and more than 100 other police officers were injured. Trump's claim that some of the rioters were "hugging and kissing" police could be a reference to videos from that day showing police letting protesters into the building and one of the Capitol police officers taking a selfie with someone who was part of the mob that overtook the Capitol. As they entered the Capitol, rioters could be heard chanting death threats against Vice President Mike Pence, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and several lawmakers, some of whom hid throughout the building while the mob sought them out. Criminal complaints filed against some of the individuals who participated in the January 6 storming of the Capitol have validated concerns about the safety of members and show the severity of the threats against them. Members of far-right militant and extremist groups, including the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, have been arrested and charged related to the Capitol riot. Trump himself has been the subject of two lawsuits filed by Democratic lawmakers who accuse him of stoking the riot. He has repeatedly denied any responsibility.
If by hugging he means calling black capitol police n***ers and by kissing he means chasing in the halls of congress ready to lynch one of them, then yeah, he's right
Half of Republicans believe false accounts of deadly U.S. Capitol riot: Reuters/Ipsos poll https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...psos-poll-idUSKBN2BS0RZ?utm_source=reddit.com Since the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, former President Donald Trump and his Republican allies have pushed false and misleading accounts to downplay the event that left five dead and scores of others wounded. His supporters appear to have listened. Three months after a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to try to overturn his November election loss, about half of Republicans believe the siege was largely a non-violent protest or was the handiwork of left-wing activists “trying to make Trump look bad,” a new Reuters/Ipsos poll has found. Six in 10 Republicans also believe the false claim put out by Trump that November’s presidential election “was stolen” from him due to widespread voter fraud, and the same proportion of Republicans think he should run again in 2024, the March 30-31 poll showed. Since the Capitol attack, Trump, many of his allies within the Republican Party and right-wing media personalities have publicly painted a picture of the day’s events jarringly at odds with reality. Hundreds of Trump’s supporters, mobilized by the former president’s false claims of a stolen election, climbed walls of the Capitol building and smashed windows to gain entry while lawmakers were inside voting to certify President Joe Biden’s election victory. The rioters - many of them sporting Trump campaign gear and waving flags - also included known white supremacist groups such as the Proud Boys. In a recent interview with Fox News, Trump said the rioters posed “zero threat.” Other prominent Republicans, such as Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, have publicly doubted whether Trump supporters were behind the riot. Last month, 12 Republicans in the House of Representatives voted against a resolution honoring Capitol Police officers who defended the grounds during the rampage, with one lawmaker saying that he objected using the word “insurrection” to describe the incident. The Reuters/Ipsos poll shows a large number of rank-and-file Republicans have embraced the myth. While 59% of all Americans say Trump bears some responsibility for the attack, only three in 10 Republicans agree. Eight in 10 Democrats and six in 10 independents reject the false claims that the Capitol siege was “mostly peaceful” or it was staged by left-wing protestors. “Republicans have their own version of reality,” said John Geer, an expert on public opinion at Vanderbilt University. “It is a huge problem. Democracy requires accountability and accountability requires evidence.” The refusal of Trump and prominent Republicans to repudiate the events of Jan. 6 increases the likelihood of a similar incident happening again, said Susan Corke, director of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups. “That is the biggest danger – normalizing this behavior,” Corke said. “I do think we are going to see more violence.” In a fresh reminder of the security threats the U.S. Capitol faces since Jan. 6, a motorist rammed a car into U.S. Capitol police on Friday and brandished a knife, killing one officer and injuring another and forcing the Capitol complex to lock down. Officers shot and killed the suspect. Allie Carroll, a spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, said its members condemned the Capitol attack and referred to a Jan. 13 statement from Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel. “Violence has no place in our politics ... Those who partook in the assault on our nation’s Capitol and those who continue to threaten violence should be found, held accountable, and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” McDaniel said. A representative for Trump did not respond to requests for comment. ‘DANGEROUS SPIN ON REALITY’ The disinformation campaign aimed at downplaying the insurrection and Trump’s role in it reflects a growing consensus within the Republican Party that its fortunes remain tethered to Trump and his devoted base, political observers say. According to the new Reuters/Ipsos poll, Trump remains the most popular figure within the party, with eight in 10 Republicans continuing to hold a favorable impression of him. “Congressional Republicans have assessed they need to max out the Trump vote to win,” said Tim Miller, a former spokesman for Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush. “That that is the path back to the majority.” Republicans in Congress show few signs of breaking with Trump. Right after the deadly Capitol siege, 147 Republican lawmakers voted against certifying Biden’s election win. The Democratic-led House of Representatives impeached Trump for “inciting an insurrection”, making him the only U.S. president to be impeached twice, but most Senate Republicans acquitted him of the charge in a trial. Last week, Republican congressman Jim Banks of Indiana said the party must cater to the working-class voters that comprise Trump’s political base ahead of next year’s critical midterm elections that will dictate control of Congress. “Members who want to swap out working-class voters because they resent President Trump’s impact... are wrong,” Banks wrote in a memo to Republican House leader Kevin McCarthy, contents of which he posted on Twitter. Banks was one of the 147 lawmakers who voted to block certification of Biden’s win, and he later voted against impeaching Trump. Banks did not respond to requests for comment. Some mainstream Republicans contend that after Republicans lost both the White House and control of both chambers of Congress on Trump’s watch, the party must move on from the former president in order to attract suburban, moderate and independent voters. In the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, only about three in 10 independents said they have a favorable view of Trump, among the lowest level recorded since his presidency. Most Americans -- about 60% -- also believe Biden won the November election fair and square, and said Trump should not run again. Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, one of Trump’s top Republican critics in Congress, has criticized the push to rewrite the history of the Capitol attack. The disinformation effort is “such a dangerous, disgusting spin on reality,” Kinzinger wrote in a fundraising appeal to supporters last month, “and what’s even worse is that it goes unchallenged by so many in the Republican Party.” The window for the Republican Party to distance itself from Trump seems to have passed, Miller said. “There was a chance after January 6 for Republican leaders to really put their foot down and say, ‘We can’t be the insurrectionist party,’” he said. “Now that opportunity is totally gone.” The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted online, in English, throughout the United States. It gathered responses from 1,005 adults between March 30-31. The poll has a credibility interval, a measure of precision, of about 4 percentage points.
NAACP's Trump insurrection lawsuit expected to add 10 new plaintiffs, including members of Congress, per reports https://www.businessinsider.com/naacps-trump-riot-suit-will-reportedly-add-10-new-plaintiffs-2021-4 The NAACP's lawsuit against Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and extremist groups is about to expand. According to The Daily Beast, 10 new plaintiffs and additional information will be added Wednesday. The NAACP brought the suit on behalf of Rep. Bennie Thompson in February after the January 6 riot. A federal lawsuit targeting former President Donald Trump, one of his lawyers, and far-right extremists in the aftermath of the January 6 Capitol attack is reportedly adding some new heavyweight plaintiffs. The NAACP's suit alleging Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and members of the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers conspired to incite a riot in an effort to prevent the certification of the 2020 presidential election is expected to add 10 plaintiffs, including other members of Congress, on Wednesday, according to The New York Times and The Daily Beast. Lawyers for the civil-rights organization brought the suit on behalf of Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi in February and alleged that Trump and his lawyer, in conjunction with far-right extremist groups, violated the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act by depriving Americans of their civil rights and disrupting the electoral vote count on January 6. In addition to new plaintiffs, the amended complaint is expected to feature additional information regarding the deadly riot in Washington, DC, according to The Daily Beast, citing two unnamed sources. During the violent siege, Thompson was among lawmakers who were forced to don gas masks and lie on the floor in an effort to avoid rioters, according to the suit. The Mississippi representative was eventually led out of the Capitol to the Longworth House Office Building, where he sheltered in place with more than 200 other lawmakers, staffers, and family members. Trump has chosen Jesse Binnall, a Republican lawyer who filed a "Stop the Steal" lawsuit in Nevada, which attempted and failed to overturn the 2020 election results, to represent him in the suit, The Daily Beast reported. The expanded lawsuit comes as Trump faces a barrage of other legal troubles since leaving office in January. Prosecutors in Georgia's Fulton County announced in February that they were officially launching a criminal investigation into whether Trump committed election interference by pressuring Georgia's secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, to "find" additional votes in the state's presidential contest. In New York, prosecutors are investigating his financial dealings while the state's attorney general is investigating whether Trump's company illegally inflated the value of its assets to score tax breaks. The former president also faces a lawsuit from two longtime Capitol Police officers, who allege Trump "inflamed, encouraged, incited, directed, and aided and abetted" the mob that caused both men injuries on January 6. Rep. Eric Swalwell of California has also filed a suit against Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Giuliani, and Republican Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama over the insurrection.