Tag: Trump insurrection

Proud Boys organizer arrested in Florida over riot at Capitol

Biggs had organized a 2019 rally in Portland, Oregon, in which more than 1,000 far-right protesters and anti-fascist counter-demonstrators faced off.

ORLANDO, Fla. —Two Florida men, including a self-described organizer for the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group, were arrested Wednesday on charges of taking part in the siege of the U.S. Capitol earlier this month, authorities said.

Joseph Biggs, 37, was arrested in central Florida and faces charges of obstructing an official proceeding before Congress, entering a restricted area on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol and disorderly conduct.

According to an arrest affidavit, Biggs was part of a crowd on Jan. 6 that overwhelmed Capitol Police officers who were manning a metal barrier on the steps of the Capitol. The mob entered the building as lawmakers were certifying President Joe Biden’s election win. Continue reading.

Judge chides suspected Pelosi laptop thief: ‘The Constitution prevails here

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HARRISBURG, Pa. — A Pennsylvania woman accused of helping to steal a laptop from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office during the attack on the U.S. Capitol in Washington was ordered released from detention Thursday and placed in her mother’s custody.

Riley June Williams, 22, must stay in the home she shares with her mother and abide by other conditions of release, including avoiding contact with any witnesses or victims of the Jan. 6 Capitol storming. Federal Magistrate Judge Martin Carlson said he was releasing Williams in part because she had no prior criminal record, but he warned her that her mother, Wendy Williams, could be criminally charged if she fails to report to the court any violations of the conditions of release.

“Your mother is making an enormous leap of faith on your behalf, and you are the one person in this courtroom who can make sure your mother doesn’t have to choose between her love for you and her duty to this court,” Carlson told the defendant. Continue reading.

McConnell seeks to delay Trump impeachment trial until February

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is proposing to delay the start of Donald Trump’s impeachment trial until February to give the former president’s lawyers more time to prepare, saying in a statement that the Senate, the presidency and Trump “deserve a full and fair process.” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) says her chamber is ready to send an article of impeachment to the Senate as soon as it is ready to hold a trial.

Separately, Congress approved a waiver for Lloyd Austin to lead the Defense Department, paving the way for the retired Army general’s historic confirmation. Austin, who would become the first Black defense secretary, requires an exemption because he has not been retired from active military service for the seven years stipulated by law.

President Biden, as he rolled out a new coronavirus plan Thursday, said that the death toll from the pandemic will probably top 500,000 next month and that it will take months “for us to turn things around.” Continue reading.

Senate Democrats file ethics complaint against Hawley, Cruz over Capitol attack

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Seven Senate Democrats are asking the Ethics Committee to open an investigation into GOP Sens. Josh Hawley (Mo.) and Ted Cruz (Texas) over the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

The senators filed a complaint on Thursday with the committee asking that it probe whether Hawley and Cruz’s objections to the Electoral College results violated the chamber’s ethics rules.

“The Senate Ethics Committee should investigate their conduct to fully understand their role. The actions of which we know demand an investigation and a determination whether disciplinary action is warranted.  Until then, a cloud of uncertainty will hang over them and over this body,” the senators wrote. Continue reading.

Army falsely denied Flynn’s brother was involved in key part of military response to Capitol riot

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The Army falsely denied for days that Lt. Gen. Charles A. Flynn, the brother of disgraced former national security adviser Michael Flynn, was involved in a key meeting during its heavily scrutinized response to the deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol.

Charles Flynn confirmed in a statement issued to The Washington Post on Wednesday that he was in the room for a tense Jan. 6 phone call during which the Capitol Police and D.C. officials pleaded with the Pentagon to dispatch the National Guard urgently, but top Army officials expressed concern about having the Guard at the Capitol.

Flynn left the room before the meeting was over, anticipating that then-Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, who was in another meeting, would soon take action to deploy more guard members, he said. Continue reading.

Army secretary departs amid questions about the National Guard’s Capitol riot response

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Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy resigned Wednesday, he said in a letter to the military’s largest branch, capping a term of tumultuous moments that ended with the unprecedented use of the National Guard at home.

His departure also comes amid questions about his role in readying National Guard troops to respond to the U.S. Capitol riot in Washington on Jan. 6, and about whether delays contributed to the disastrous outcome. His responsibilities included overseeing the use of Guard members in D.C.

McCarthy’s resignation ends speculation about whether the Biden administration may have retained him for further service. McCarthy, a former Army Ranger who served in combat, was one of a handful of early Trump appointees to reach the end of the administration. Continue reading.

Trump entertained plan to install an attorney general who would help him pursue baseless election fraud claims

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Then-President Donald Trump in early January entertained a plan to replace the acting attorney general with a different Justice Department lawyer who was more amenable to pursuing his unfounded claims of voter fraud, nearly touching off a crisis at the country’s premier federal law enforcement institution, people familiar with the matter said.

The plan — if enacted — would have pushed out Jeffrey Rosen as the acting attorney general and installed in his place Jeffrey Clark, whom Trump had appointed to lead the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and who later would come to lead the Civil Division. Clark, then, could have taken steps to wield the Justice Department’s power to help keep Trump in office. But the president was ultimately dissuaded from moving forward after a high-stakes meeting with those involved, the people said.

The people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a politically sensitive matter. The move was first reported by the New York Times. Legal analysts said it amounted to a disastrous attack on the Justice Department’s independence, and perhaps something worse. Continue reading.

Republican says ‘classified briefings’ revealed that the Capitol riot was ‘much worse than people realized’

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Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.), the first Republican lawmaker to publicly support efforts to impeach former President Donald Trump, is speaking out about the deadly Capitol riots that erupted on Jan. 6 as lawmakers worked to complete the Electoral College certification.

Although the American public watched in shock and dismay as the disturbing series of events unfolded, Katko insists the riots were far worse than reported on television. During an interview with Syracuse.com, Katko shared details about the day of the deadly U.S. Capitol riots.

While he could not offer specific details about the classified briefings he has received, he did reveal that the incident was far worse than reported. Continue reading.

FBI Arrests Woman Accused Of Stealing Pelosi Laptop During Riot

Joining the increasing number of Trump supporters arrested after storming the Capitol on Jan. 6, a Pennsylvania woman who allegedly took a laptop belonging to Speaker Nancy Pelosi was arrested Monday. The woman, identified as 22-year-old Riley June Williams, is charged with intentionally entering into a restricted building without lawful authority in addition to disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. While Williams has not yet been charged with theft, the FBI is investigating the matter and what her intentions were.

According to an FBI court filing on Sunday, a witness who self-identified as a former significant other of Williams told the bureau that Williams “intended to send the computer device to a friend in Russia, who then planned to sell the device to SVR, Russia’s foreign intelligence service.” The witness also directed the agency to a 32-minute video from inside the Capitol posted to ITV News. The viral video has since been removed from YouTube.

The footage from ITV News depicts Williams in a green T-shirt and brown trench coat. Clips of her from the riot went viral for her directing rioters to repeatedly go “up the stairs” toward Pelosi’s office. Referring to Williams, a reporter can also be heard saying that the woman depicted was “disciplined, focused, with a sense of urgency directing people up a staircase.” Continue reading.

House will transmit article of impeachment to Senate on Monday, Schumer says

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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced that the House will deliver the article of impeachment against former President Trump for “incitement of insurrection” on Monday.

Why it matters: The Senate is required to begin the impeachment trial at 1 p.m. the day after the article is transmitted. 

  • Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) had been pushing for the trial to begin in mid-February to allow senators more time to gather evidence and to give Trump proper due process.
  • Schumer had countered that it would force the Senate to delay other important business, such as passing COVID relief.

What they’re saying: “I’ve heard some of my Republican colleagues argue that this trial would be unconstitutional because Donald Trump is no longer in office. An argument that has been roundly repudiated, debunked by hundreds of constitutional scholars — left, right, and center — and defies basic common sense,” Schumer said in a speech on the Senate floor. Continue reading.