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Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Dec 5, 2021 • 10 tweets • 6 min read • Read on X

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The far-right "Patriot Front" rallied today in front of the United States Capitol and marched throughout Washington DC, protected at all stages by MPD, who kept press & counter-protesters away from them.

Their avowed fascist leader Thomas Rousseau led chants & spoke at Capitol.

Patriot Front marched through the National Mall, filming themselves as they passed locations like the WWII and Lincoln memorials with a roving police perimeter surrounding them.

They ultimately crossed the Arlington Memorial Bridge into Virginia.

After crossing into Virginia, about half of the "Patriot Front" members loaded into U-Haul moving trucks and were driven away.

The remaining 75 or so members stood in a shield formation behind a police line.

Officers detoured traffic in the area & closed one side of the bridge.

It wasn't until more than an hour later that another or one of the earlier U-Hauls came to pick up the remaining "Patriot Front" members who had been standing still surrounded by cops until then.

Only about half of them fit, leaving 30-40 more standing on the side of the road.

Officers circled their vehicles around the remaining 30-40 Patriot Front members and let traffic begin again.

Totaling more than three hours after reaching their exit point, a U-Haul picked up the remaining members from the side of the road at Arlington National Cemetery.

@N2Sreports

Here is my full @N2Sreports summary video reel of today's unexpected rally by the fascist group "Patriot Front" throughout Washington DC.

The rally was a surprise, so my video begins roughly an hour after they apparently entered the city.

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1226629333160275968

To be very clear, I don't use the term "fascist" sparingly; the group was led tonight by its founder Thomas Rousseau (seen throughout the footage, the only member not wearing a mask), who openly said he identifies as a fascist at Charlottesville.

https://twitter.com/FordFischer/status/1226629333160275968

@thencarolsaid

For more on the background of Patriot Front, I'd recommend this very thorough story by @thencarolsaid and @frizimmermann at @propublica.

propublica.org/article/they-a…

@washingtonpost

Added odd element to this story: Apparently a fake account on Twitter that appears to have belonged to Patriot Front itself was the first one to tweet about this.

@washingtonpost wrote about it, but @conspirator0 I think caught this first.

washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2021/…

https://twitter.com/conspirator0/status/1467287534464114690

It was after that that antifascist accounts began talking about it.

I personally didn’t arrive until more than half hour after seeing these; some journalists didn’t arrive until the masked group had reached their apparent pickup space where they were guarded by police for hours.

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More from @FordFischer

Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Dec 19

THREAD: On Tuesday, Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) officers with the Norfolk FBI and assistance from the ATF arrested Virginia man Brad Spafford for possessing an unregistered short barrel rifle (SBR).

The arrest was the result of a multi-year Confidential Human Source (CHS).

2) A Confidential Human Source (CHS, commonly known as "informant" or colloquially as "snitch") reported in January 2023 that Spafford lost fingers on Independence Day 2021 "while working with a homemade explosive device."

He says Spafford and friends were making ammunition for "something that Spafford would not be able to do alone."

The informant reportedly saw Spafford's hands "before and after the event" which is confusingly worded; if he saw them in person, then the informant has been around the defendant for more than three years.

If he saw them pre- disfigurement some other way, like a photo, then he still has been around him for at least nearly two years.

3) In May 2023, the informant and Spafford went to a gun range together, each with "their own weapons."

The informant brought his own Short Barrel Rifle, but it was registered.

The now-defendant allegedly brought what the informant believed was also an SBR.

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Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Oct 30

Just now: Attendees of Vice President Kamala Harris’s rally at the Ellipse resort to climbing over the “scale proof” fences surrounding the event after exit gates were closed, apparently due to pro-Palestine protesters on the other side.

2) "Push it down!"

During some of the confusion as police wouldn't allow people to leave the Harris Ellipse speech, some pushed over a small plastic fence that divided them from other people also trying to exit.

It didn't make a difference.

3) "You say it's open but where's it open?" crowds frustrated attempted to confront police as they had difficulty leaving the Harris rally.

"No! No! No!" a cop said as a man jumped, leaving a woman with him behind, who would have had to find a not-closed gate.

Meanwhile, police attempted to confine the pro-Palestine protests outside.

Read 7 tweets

Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Sep 11

VIDEO THREAD: Tonight, police and protesters clashed outside the presidential debate in Philly.

I want to detail how that happened.

All was at peace until one person lit a flare, waving it around for the cameras.

Police pushed in in force, arresting him and angering the crowd.

2) A handful of frustrated protesters linked arms and pushed into a line of bike cops, mimicking them by shouting "move!"

"CPD, KKK, IOF you're all the same!" they chanted as a shoving match ensued.

Additional police arrived in riot gear and the scuffle spread and intensified.

3) With police assembling in riot gear including shields now, the remaining pro-Palestine protesters called to "disperse!"

Officers ended up facing off with a mostly empty street consisting of a handful of stragglers as well as remaining news cameras.

Read 12 tweets

Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Sep 8

VIDEO THREAD: "Queers love Palestine! HRC loves the war machine!"

Protesters rallied against the Human Rights Campaign dinner tonight featuring Tim Walz in DC to condemn their relationship with weapons manufacturers, which they say enable genocide.

"We're not interupting!" they chanted. "Pink washing is disgusting!"

2) Protesters put red paint on their hands to symbolize what they say is the Human Rights Campaign's support for the killing of Palestinians.

"HRC is using our name to pinkwash an administration committing genocide, burning children under rubble but those children are not human enough for the Human Rights campaign, shame!"

3) "We are here, we are queer! Zionists not welcome here!"

Protesters banged on the windows overlooking the escalator and lobby that HRC guests went through to get to the gala with Tim Walz.

Police stepped in, forcing them away from the glass.

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Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Jul 24

This is my 4K footage of how the violence outside the United States Capitol began today.

You can see the first mace deployed (over the heads of officers, toward the activists) which angers the pro-Palestine crowd, who begins throwing water bottles as officers continue using mace.

A little over a minute into the clip is a flash grenade, one of only a couple I saw used today.

My understanding is this occurred after Netanyahu arrived but before he spoke to Congress.

2) As police engaged the crowd, a man scolded police and was maced as well.

The crowd continued marching, taking a wider route around the Capitol and avoiding most confrontations during the march itself.

3) "Smack Netanyahu in the head with that billy club!"

Activists continued a wide march around the United States Capitol from the West side to the East side clockwise.

Some pro-Israel, anti-Netanyahu activists stood along the path and were mostly ignored. Police blocked off streets heading close to the Capitol complex.

Read 9 tweets

Ford Fischer

@FordFischer

Jul 24

VIDEO THREAD: Protesters gathered Tuesday night in front of the Watergate Hotel (the second night in a row) for a noise demonstration against Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who is staying inside.

"From DC to Palestine, Netanyahu's out of time!" chanted protesters using red and green smoke bombs. "Shut, shut, shut it down, no Zionism in this town!"

2) "Allahu Akbar! Hamas!" yelled one man through the fencer outside the Watergate at Israel supporters counter-protesting them from inside.

"Jewish motherf***ers!" he yelled. "We're gonna kill all of you!"

"We're gonna burn you!"

It should be noted that it was one lone individual, not the wider protest, using this specific rhetoric.

3) One man dawning an Israeli flag confronted the pro-Palestine protesters directly outside the Watergate.

"You're a coward, you should join the IDF and kill kids yourself, because you're a p***y," he was told.

The man says he's from Jerusalem, but he donates, rather than being in the IDF.