#SeditionHunters - this week’s hack of the roster for the ultra-secretive Council for National Policy, “the most powerful conservatives in the country” (NYT), reminds us that longtime CNP member Jason Jones (#VIPCamel) was at the front of the East Capitol breaches on Jan 6. 1/
Anti-abortion activist Jones has been a CNP member since the last hack in 2014. ID’d in January, he was so brazen people thought first he might somehow be legal. Instead he may be the first CNP member arrested for Jan 6 actions - he helped pull down the barricades. 2/
On Jan 6, Jones began the day in the VIP section at the Ellipse near others later seen at the Capitol (labeled in blue here, including #IamDougMastriano). 3/
Mastriano's not a CNP member, but many well-known names are. CNP rosters from 2014 and 2020 are publicly viewable: 2014, from the SPLC at link below; 2020 at ddosecrets. com. More on the CNP and its membership from @jennycohn1: 4/ splcenter.org/sites/default/…
Jones (#VIPCamel) crossed barricades with his mini-entourage (#VIPCamelSidekick & 2 others), made a long phone call while watching the mob break the police line on the stairs, then climbed the stairs himself. Midway they stop & seem to gesture urgently to someone below. 5/
Once at the top, Jason Jones aka #VIPCamel cheered from the north balcony, shortly after Michael Coudrey (#IamMichaelCoudrey) did the same… 6/
...then both #VIPCamel and Coudrey watched InfoWars’ #IamAlexJones arrive & give a speech. Both joined up with him after - #VIPCamel came down the stairs a little behind the InfoWars group, but met up with them on the E. Plaza. 7/
Jason Jones’ connection with Alex (no relation) is not that surprising; he appears plugged in to the Jan 6 crowd of election-fraud conspiracists, anti-vaxxers, anti-abortion figures. Here he is in the VIP tent at the Jan 5 Freedom Plaza rally with now-arrested #IamSimoneGold. 8/
The Jan 5 tent swarmed with #SeditionVIPs - everyone labeled in this pic besides Lindell entered restricted Capitol grounds on Jan 6. Watch for yourself & hear the histrionic talk. (Roger Stone: "1 million Americans are going to.. stand up for truth") 9/
Jason Jones seemed well-aware of a planned Capitol attack from very early on. Already on Dec. 20 he was publicizing on FB a call to the Capitol 1/6, and was clear about expectations: “will you be bringing any of your kids?” “nope” “because of the threat of violence?” “yup”. 10/
In comments on a Dec. 28 post, people suggest bringing bear spray, Jones didn’t disagree. On Jan 1 posted an article "On January 6, we learn whether our Constitution will hold", added “let’s roll”. On Jan 4, invoked religion: “God never forsakes those who fight in his ranks” 11/
Jones is not out of step with the CNP - while its membership skews geriatric, with names from the Reagan era (Ed Meese, pushing 90! Tom DeLay! Wayne LaPierre of the NRA!), its younger members are firmly part of the modern conspiracy-theory set. 12/
Linking the establishment & the radical fringe is in fact a CNP hallmark. The SPLC called it a “key meeting place” for these different worlds, a “venue where mainstream conservatives and extremists mix”. 13/ splcenter.org/hatewatch/2016…
In Aug. 2020, speakers at CNP’s VA meeting “discuss[ed] election tactics, amplif[ed] conspiracy theories and describ[ed] much of America in dark and apocalyptic terms.” (WaPo, from bootleg video). Acting Sec. of Homeland Security Chad Wolf was there. 14/ washingtonpost.com/investigations…
Older CNP members spoke darkly in VA too: Leo Bozell III (CNP executive comm.) claimed the left wants to “steal this election”, then “democracy is finished because they usher in totalitarianism.” On Jan 6, his son Leo Bozell IV (#HersheyChristianAcademy) breached the Capitol. 15/
Amy Kremer, organizer of the Jan 6 morning “Save America March” rally at the Ellipse and a “founding mother” of the 2009 Tea Party movement (per Mother Jones) appeared as a CNP member in the 2014 roster, but was no longer listed in 2020. 16/
Jenny Beth Martin, CNP Exec. Committee Secretary and founder of the “Tea Party Patriots”, has long feuded with Kremer, but both supported Trump from 2016 and Martin sat front and center at the Jan 6 Ellipse rally. Dad Ed Martin (also CNP) sat nearby. 17/ motherjones.com/politics/2021/…
CNP's Jenny Beth Martin later issued a statement decrying the Capitol attack -"We are shocked, outraged, and saddened at the turn of events on January 6" - but seemed awfully enthusiastic while it was ongoing, on the W. Capitol lawn with her bullhorn. 18/
For people wanting more information on the CNP, the definitive resource is Anne Nelson’s 2019 book “Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right“. 19/ amazon.com/Shadow-Network…
@anelsona: the CNP combines “the manpower & media of the Christian right with the finances of Western plutocrats & the strategy of right-wing...political operatives."
More recently, @davetroy has written about the CNP in the context of January 6. /20
The information & video sightings in this thread were gathered by many #SeditionHunters in a collective crowdsourced effort; no-one wished to be named. We’re still working on a complete #VIPCamel reel; meanwhile see thread below for more sightings. 21/
Why is Chuck Schumer caving and supporting Trump's spending bill, despite public outrage? Note that Schumer's in deep with the crypto industry, the largest donor of the last election cycle and the same Silicon Valley set trying to take over the U.S. now 1/ cnn.com/2025/03/13/pol…
Schumer had already caved by staying servile to the industry that denied him a Senate majority by spending $40M to knock out Sherrod Brown. They took Schumer's power! For him to rationalize supporting Trump's spending bill is just a small step further. 2/ commondreams.org/news/sherrod-b…
In 2024 Schumer feuded with Sherrod Brown, chair of the Senate Banking Committee, over Brown's push to regulate crypto. Schumer then became Kamala Harris' crypto liaison, even as crypto poured millions into taking the Senate from him by defeating Brown. 3/ prospect.org/power/2024-04-…
This story is truly alarming - @kyledcheney has buried the lede. The FBI has told Citibank that recipients of EPA climate grants are being considered as potentially liable for fraud. That is, the Trump administration wants to criminalize work on climate science and impacts. 1/
It's staggering that this could happen in the US: an incoming administration not only cancels federal grants but declares recipients as criminals. All these grantees applied under government calls FOR ENVIRONMENTAL WORK, were reviewed and accepted. Trump wants to jail them. 2/
Obviously we need more details but the letter from the FBI lists 28 organizations, mostly nonprofits serving communities: e.g. the DC Green Bank helps DC residents finance solar energy and building efficiency projects. This is not fraud. This is targeted harassment. 3/
Many people are talking about the WSJ's new reporting that Kash Patel wants to live part-time in Las Vegas and run the FBI remotely. Seems like people missed some key context provided earlier by the Nevada Independent: Kash lives there with timeshare scammer Michael Muldoon. 1/
The Nevada Independent reports that Patel, who's known Muldoon since at least 2019, has been registered to vote at Muldoon's Las Vegas home since January 2022. Muldoon states in FEC filings he lives there too. But he won't answer questions about Patel. 2/ thenevadaindependent.com/article/trump-…
What's disturbing about this is the secrecy. Kash won't explain, and Muldoon hung up on reporters. The FBI Director, who is privy to the nation's secrets, isn't supposed to have secrets of his own. It's a security risk. Reporters must demand an explanation. 3/
Trump kicks Huffpost out of the press pool and the Axios reporter just.. takes over his slot. Shameful. Reporters should have all quit the pool immediately. Complying is the first step towards meekly taking dictation. You have to resist! No coverage unless it's on your terms. 1/
This is White House reporters failing Authoritarianism 101. Resist and they back down. Comply and they demand more. We all know this! And to comply for a stupid pool report no one cares about, so you can tell your readers what Trump ate for lunch. It's just a disgrace. 2/
White House reporters have been mocking Dem leadership for not having a plan, but when the time came for them, they flopped just as hard. They knew this was coming! And yet they had no plan. It's humiliating for us Americans. The French put us to shame. 3/ the-independent.com/news/world/ame…
A big milestone: former US ambassador to Russia Michael McFault finally accepts it - Trump backs Putin. The US is led by a traitor. McFaul held out hope for a long time but the evidence is now undeniable. And Russia's been fueling division in the US for over a decade... 1/
In a tally of influencers who brought the crowds to the Capitol on Jan 6, nearly 20% have a deep Russian tie - Russian residency or family, Russian-speaking spouse, hired by Russian media. It is not random. Russia has waging information war on the US, especially since 2014. 2/
Here are the names behind that chart, with color codes. Russia is all over the US far right. The names in red here don't even include those just boosted by Russia (e.g. Brandon Straka). These are direct payments or family ties - likely people on a list, then cultivated. 2/
Newsflash: Deputy DoD Press Sec. Kingsley Wilson, whose Twitter profile shows her wearing a "MAGA" T-shirt, is violating the Hatch Act, which says employees may not "wear or display partisan political buttons, T-shirts, signs, or other items". See next Tweet to report it. 1/
It's undoubted that Wilson is using this Twitter account for official DoD business, since she uses it to respond to a WaPo reporter. Hatch Act guidance on this is very clear. This OSC page tells you how to file a complaint about a Hatch Act violation. 2/ osc.gov/Services/Pages…
Strangely Deputy DoD spokeswoman Kingsley Wilson's Twitter account seems not saveable on - someone has blocked it? - but it is saved on other platforms. Plenty of other Hatch Act violations here, including her pinned Tweet, for those who want to dig. 3/ archive.org