Jan 6 rally organizer’s testimony to show his split from Women for Trump

Tensions within the Make America Great Again movement are expected to be discussed in testimony before the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Ali Alexander, who The New York Timesdescribed as a "provocateur" and "a prominent organizer of the Stop the Steal rally that drew supporters of President Donald J. Trump to Washington on Jan. 6," is scheduled to testify before the select committee on Thursday.

When Alexander was subpoenaed in October, the committee noted press reports on his efforts to overturn the election.

"According to press reports, in the weeks before the January 6th attack, Mr. Alexander made repeated reference during Stop-the-Steal-sponsored events to the possible use of violence to achieve the organization’s goals and claimed to have been in communication with the White House and Members of Congress regarding events planned to coincide with the certification of the 2020 Electoral College results," the select committee said. Additionally, Mr. Alexander reportedly spoke at a rally on January 5th, 2021, held by the Eighty Percent Coalition at Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., and led the crowd in a chant of 'victory, or death.'"

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In a copy of his opening statement obtained by The Times, Alexander denied have a role in the violence.

"I had nothing to do with any violence or lawbreaking that happened on January 6. I had nothing to do with the planning. I had nothing to do with the preparation. And I had nothing to do with the execution," he wrote. "I did absolutely nothing wrong."

Alexander's opening also seeks to cast blame on Women for America First (WFAF) Chair Amy Kremer, her daughter and executive director, Kylie Kremer, and former Trump campaign official Katrina Pierson. When the three were subpoenaed in September, the select committee said Pierson was "reportedly involved in the organization of the January 5th and 6th rallies and was in direct communication with the former President about the rallies."

"While I was actively trying to de-escalate events at the Capitol and end the violence and lawlessness, it’s important to note that certain people were nowhere to be found, including Amy Kremer, Kylie Kremer, and Katrina Pierson; essentially, the Women for America First leadership of the Ellipse Rally that was originally titled the 'March for Trump' in their National Park Service permit application," his opening reads.

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"Press reports suggest they may have had their feet up drinking donor-funded champagne in a War Room in the Willard. I don’t know where they were. But they weren’t working with police trying to de-escalate the chaos like I was," he continues. "It is my belief there may not have been a problem had that same leadership at the Ellipse event not intentionally removed instructions from the program that were supposed to be included to provide clarity on exactly where to go following the Ellipse event. When I protested the removal of those instructions, I was barred from participating as an organizer at the Ellipse event that preceded the Capitol riot. Ultimately, I was a VIP guest at the Ellipse event."

In June, ProPublica reported organizers of the Ellipse rally found Alexander too extreme to speak.

"ProPublica has obtained new details about the Trump White House's knowledge of the gathering storm, after interviewing more than 50 people involved in the events of Jan. 6 and reviewing months of private correspondence. Taken together, these accounts suggest that senior Trump aides had been warned the Jan. 6 events could turn chaotic, with tens of thousands of people potentially overwhelming ill-prepared law enforcement officials," the news site reported. "Rather than trying to halt the march, Trump and his allies accommodated its leaders, according to text messages and interviews with Republican operatives and officials."

"Katrina Pierson, a former Trump campaign official assigned by the White House to take charge of the rally planning, helped arrange a deal where those organizers deemed too extreme to speak at the Ellipse could do so on the night of Jan. 5," ProPublica explained. "That event ended up including incendiary speeches from Jones and Ali Alexander, the leader of Stop the Steal, who fired up his followers with a chant of “Victory or death!"

In a since deleted Periscope video, Alexander took credit for planning Jan. 6 with Reps. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Mo Brooks (R-AL) and Paul Gosar (R-AZ).

"I was the person that came up with the January 6 idea with Congressman Gosar, Congressman Mo Brooks and then Congressman Andy Biggs. We four schemed up of putting maximum pressure on Congress, while they were voting, so that who we couldn’t lobby, we could change the hearts and minds of Republicans who were in that body hearing our loud war from outside," Alexander said.

On the morning of Jan. 6, Gosar tagged Alexander in a social media message demanding Joe Biden concede the race, even though the Democrat had decisively won and had his victory certified by the Electoral College.

Gosar dodged local reporter Brahm Resnik of KPNX-TV when asked about his relationship with Alexander.