#SeditionHunters have caught another #SeditionVIP in his lies! A big one - AZ State Rep. Mark Finchem claimed he was only “300 to 500 yards away from the Capitol. I was never really there.” Oh yes he was! Let’s review. (See thrd, h/t @cMominator for find & @MThymol for video) 1/
First, why is Finchem a big one? Here’s Ali Alexander on Jan 10: “Arizona started with one man -- State Rep. Mark Finchem… now we’re dealing with 40 or 50 [state reps]....I’m very optimistic that Stop the Steal has already taken over Arizona” (Posted by Church Militant.) 2/
On Jan. 2, Finchem tweeted his DC plans: “I will be in Washington DC on January 6 to #StopTheSteal and fight for President @ realDonaldTrump”.... “This is one of the most important days our republic has ever seen. We need all hands on deck.” 3/ azmirror.com/2021/02/10/the…
On Jan 6 Finchem was in the VIP section of the morning rally at the Ellipse, then rushed by golf cart to the Capitol, where he was due to speak, texting en route with fellow #SeditionVIPs Ali Alexander and Michael Coudrey (btw Ali funded his hotel). 4/ phoenixnewtimes.com/news/arizona-r…
Finchem is first seen on the Capitol E. Plaza at 2:13, walking south. What is chilling about 2:13? It’s the exact time when the Capitol is first breached, and when Ali Alexander sent a Tweet: “First official day of the rebellion.” 5/
Ali tweeted 2:13, then went up the Capitol steps with Alex Jones. Ca. 2:21 PM (L) Finchem posted a photo of the mob on the steps with Jones speaking. “What happens when the People feel they have been ignored, and Congress refuses to acknowledge rampant fraud. #stopthesteal,” 6/
At 2:25, at exactly the time when the East Main Doors are first breached, Finchem is seen backtracking N up the Plaza. Coincidence? Maybe - he could be fleeing the several vans full of DC police who arrived just beforehand. Either way, bad timing for an innocent tourist. 7/
Updates #IamMarkFinchem sponsored the ongoing AZ ‘fraudit’. He is running for Sec. of State to oversee AZ elections. He has refused to comply with a public records request.
This headline about how Trump lied about nearly dying in a helicopter crash gives major deja vu. Sure, today he mixed up Jerry Brown vs. Willie Brown. But there may be a deeper brain scramble going on. Trump famously lied about nearly dying in a helicopter crash in 1989. 1/
In Oct 1989, as Trump's casinos were edging into bankruptcy, 3 of his top casino execs died in a crash of a helicopter chartered by the Trump Org. The rotor simply fell off. Trump soon began telling reporters he was scheduled to be on the flight too. 2/ pressofatlanticcity.com/3-trump-execs-…
Trump's story of miraculously cheating death got a lot of press, even though other Trump execs contradicted his story almost immediately. It was a big deal; it got national-level coverage. In an old man losing his memories, this helicopter story might still remain. 3/
Since Trump has nothing new to offer, he can win only by smears and lies. That's why he hired Chris LaCivita, who "swift-boated" John Kerry with false slurs on his war record. LaCivita is already gunning for Walz. So let's talk about how to counter this swift-boat attack. 1/
Realize; the target of the smear is you. It's harmless if it's confined to Truth Social or GETTR. The goal is to get YOU talking about it. So ideally, we'd just ignore LaCivita's lies about Walz. The problem is, media is now helping them. They're making the smear the story. 2/
The NYT just handed Trump a huge gift, since LaCivita's entire goal is to control the dialogue, to force you to defend against his lie. So the only good response is to stay on offense. Don't let him make you chase the ball. Hit one return and then control the court again. 3/
New info about Jan 6: the DHS OIG report confirms that Secret Service drivers were emailing about rumored plans to take Trump to the Capitol already the day before. On Jan 5, people knew. 1/ oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/…
Fliers had circulated for weeks telling people to march to the Capitol. By January 4, Kylie Kremer knows that Trump would call on them to go to the Capitol in his speech. But the DHS OIG report is the first documented evidence suggesting Trump planned to go along too. 2/
The OIG report seems wrong in places. It says Pence was evacuated at 2:12 PM, before the Capitol was breached. But Pence is still there: Sen. Lankford waves at him as he says "vice president". Pence wasn't pulled til 2:13 PM, as the breach was happening. It was so close. 3/
Trump's big flop today asking "is Kamala Black enough?" also shows he's being given talking points. This theme was pushed heavily in 2019 by astroturfed ops, some tied to Russia, many later to Jan 6. It was part of a wider effort to divide the Black community over immigration. 1/
This attack was used against Kamala Harris in 2019 by a chorus of voices including Donald Trump Jr and Ali Alexander. We all knew it was coming back. In this timeline note how it goes with a divisive, astroturfed push for reparations for non-immigrants. 2/
Trump's inept attack today exactly rehashes the 2019 malicious influence campaign, almost word for word. It suggests the same players are at work today. Trump is an instrument for larger forces - some of them foreign. 3/ slate.com/news-and-polit…
Interesting times in the presidential race when JD Vance is going to be IN PRINT praising the plans of Project 2025 author Kevin Roberts. Vance was installed as an avatar of these antidemocratic forces. Trump's campaign is beholden to his backers. Keep the focus on them. 1/
Peter Thiel shows up in the Project 2025 sponsor list, though as usual he tries to keep his name quiet. The "T" icon here is Teneo, started by a Thiel employee and his protegee Josh Hawley - they coyly show only a logo, no name. Leonard Leo now runs it; JD Vance is a member. 2/
All these groups are linked. Next to Teneo is the Texas Public Policy Foundation, led by Kevin Roberts before he went to Heritage. In 2020, TPPF war-gamed out how to contest the election with Thiel avatar Jeff Giesea and the now-indicted John Eastman. 3/
Yesterday's Dem unity is wonderful to see. Fascism may be on its heels. Just realize that the forces against Harris are the same as those against Biden. Here's media from today. The broligarchs won't quit. And Putin's fight is existential now. People must stand up for her. 1/
There's really no daylight between Peter Thiel's crowd and Putin anymore. Elon Musk and David Sacks are spreading direct Russian propaganda. And Putin's only hope of survival is electing Trump/Vance. This set will throw everything against Kamala Harris. 2/
We should be optimistic. But we should also be prepared. What's coming will be ugly: misogyny, racism, lies. And, if the propaganda doesn't work, whatever else Putin can do to hurt the US - whatever divides and demoralizes. Unity and confidence and teamwork is the way to win. 3/