Prosecutors presented text messages showing the Oath Keepers seeking to create an "alliance" with Proud Boys and Three Percenters as the far-right militant groups planned for Jan. 6.
The evidence was presented in the trial of five Oath Keepers charged with seditious conspiracy.
"Three days after President Donald J. Trump posted a tweet summoning his followers to Washington for a 'wild' protest on Jan. 6, 2021, Kelly Meggs, the leader of the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers militia, started reaching out to allies in other far-right organizations," The New York Times reported. "Among them was a man named Jeremy Liggett who ran a group in Florida called the B-Squad, an offshoot of the pro-gun Three Percenter movement."
In addition to seditious conspiracy, Meggs was also charged with conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging any duties, and tampering with documents or proceedings.
“He wants us to make it wild that’s what he’s saying,” Meggs wrote. “He called us all to the Capitol and wants us to make it wild!!!”
He referred to the Proud Boys as a "force multiplier."
“1776,” Liggett said. “We are gonna make history.”
Trump's Dec. 19 tweet has also been highlighted by the House Select Committee Investigating the Jan. 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol.
"The messages presented in court on Thursday also demonstrated how a variety of far-right groups had been energized by Mr. Trump’s tweet from Dec. 19, 2020, which was widely read as a clarion call to action," The Times reported. "Mr. Meggs and other Oath Keepers now on trial — including Stewart Rhodes, the organization’s founder and leader — seemed elated by the tweet; they swapped messages celebrating the president’s invitation and vowing to stop Joseph R. Biden Jr. from taking office."
Read the full report.
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