Some observations on this weekend's anti-immigrant Take Our Border Back Convoy. It took three venues to contain the breadth of far-right factions under the Take Our Border Back Convoy banner. The San Ysidro stage primarily featured anti-immigrant fear-mongering and anti-trans bigotry wrapped in a Christian nationalist package.

One of the significant Take Our Border Back Convoy on-the-ground organizers is Johnathon Townsend Alexander. While he portrays his role with "Live Border News" as a journalist, he leaves out his years of far-right paramilitary activity. During a recent program of Take Our Border Back spokesperson Kim Yeater, Alexander was featured wearing an Oath Keepers Arizona Chapter cap.

(The other guest on the show was notorious 9/11 Truther Richard Gage).

Adding to the volatility created by TX Gov. Abbott's thumbing his nose at the Constitution, a group of far-right activists led by QAnon figures, election deniers, anti-vaxxers, J6 supporters, and sovereign citizens created a "Take Our Border Back" Convoy.

mediamatters.org/immigration/ri… The group's steering committee consists of:
* Scotty Saks and Mark Istratoff of Sovereign Radio
* Noel Roberts (Patriot Mom 007)
*Mark Anthony (11th Hour 7007)
* Robert Agee (Banners for Freedom)
* Kim Yeater (Take Your Power Back Radio)

Today, Ammon Bundy took to social media to confess that he's been intentionally evading the arrest warrant issued for him for intimidating witnesses in his defamation case.

Yesterday, he posted a video targeting witnesses in the same case.

There needs to be accountability. Also today, Bundy compatriot Diego Rodriguez threatened to sue Idaho Leaders United for defamation for this op-ed celebrating St. Luke’s $52.5 million verdict in their defamation suit.

(Spoiler: He won’t.)

amp.idahostatesman.com/opinion/reader…

The new "documentary" Plandemic 3: The Great Awakening officially launches today.

Rather than centering on anti-vax conspiracists, this one revolves around G. Edward Griffin, the conspiracist who wrote: "This is the John Birch Society: An Invitation to Membership." While Plandemic 3 does feature several leading anti-vaxers like Del Bigtree, Robert Malone, and the late Zev Zelenko, this is about moving viewers from narrow anti-vax politics to a more encompassing far-right ideology.

Thread: Just finished a talk on COVID Denial/Anti-Vax misinformation onstage at last weekend's ReAwaken America conference in Miami. Here are some of the findings. While Trump calling in to offer Michael Flynn a job in his next administration cuaght headlines, there was a lot more at ReAwaken America last weekend.

I sat through 26 hours of ReAwaken America so you don't have to.
talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-cal…

THREAD: Some have questioned my characterization of Ammon Bundy's People's Rights Network(PRN), so here's a list of some of the things PRN leaders have been arrested/convicted of since the founding of the organization. Sean Anderson. PRN Idaho Area 4 Area Assistant. Convicted and sentenced to 18 years in jail for a shootout with law enforcement. ktvb.com/article/news/c…

THREAD: Major updates in the allegations of theft/fraud against CSPOA leader Richard Mack. Today it was confirmed that an attorney for America's Frontline Doctors (Free Speech Foundation) filed theft/fraud charges against Mack--who was serving as president of AFLDS. According to the AFLDS attorney who filed the charges, Lauren Bradford, Mack was removed as president on April 1 by the board. He was ordered to return the money. He did not, according to oversight board member Kevin Jenkins.

The exhaustively debunked election denial film, 2,000 Mules, has inspired many far-right groups to take up ballot drop box vigilantism. Surveillance, armed patrols, and intimidation of voters are real threats this cycle.

Among those organizing such efforts is Matt Shea. In Arizona, the far-right paramilitary group, Lions of Liberty, launched what they're calling "Operation: Drop Box." With the help of a supportive sheriff, they "plan on watching the ballot boxes throughout Yavapai County."

For those just catching up on the "Constitutional Sheriff" scheme to intervene in elections, I highly recommend reading the following @IREHR pieces for both history and context.

1. "Constitutional Sheriffs" and the "Election Fraud" Conspiracy Posse

irehr.org/2022/06/14/con… 2. CSPOA-Allied Sheriff Calls for "Election Fraud" Task Force.

irehr.org/2022/06/20/csp…

My biggest takeaways from today's #CPAC2022 coverage are:

1. how dominant the anti-woke message has become and how it fuses COVID denial, racism denial, anti-trans, anti-sex ed, anti-public schools message into one big bundle of white victimhood. 2. how they're trying to sweep Jan. 6 under the rug and reframe the conversation to be about a "faulty" 2020 election and push for voter suppression laws. That Stop the Steal figures like Jenny Beth Martin, and Senators like Hawley and Cruz headlined are signs of further trouble.

Thread: a critique of the WaPost attempt to graft "economic anxiety" into the Capitol insurrection discussion.

Here's the article in question that's been trending.

A majority of the people arrested for Capitol riot had a history of financial trouble washingtonpost.com/business/2021/… 1. It was hard not to laugh out loud at an "economic anxiety" piece centered around a woman who arrived in DC in a private jet.

Wondering where the anti-mask fervor is generated? The lastest @IREHR data on far-right groups opposed to #COVID19 restrictions found 227 groups with 254,534 members explicitly dedicated to the anti-mask cause.

irehr.org/covid19updates… This includes Facebook groups like "Masks Are A Choice - Orange County", "MASKS ARE FOR THE SHEEP AND THE SLAVES OF THE ZIONIST JEWS!" and "People against wearing masks! AKA, we're not sheep!"

Thread: more evidence of the presence of the "Boogaloo Bois" - those itching to kick off a bloody Civil War II - in the growing number of far-right "ReOpen" protest groups.

Here's the conversation inside ReOpen Texas. "Bigigloo" is just another name for the "Boogaloo." Here you have #ReOpen activists begging to start a bloody armed conflict.

Clinging to the notion of #COVID19 insurrectionist groups as “Astroturf” is understandable, but wrong. I get it’s terrifying to think that there are 1.3 million Americans so anxious that they’re willing to ignore medical experts and put lives at risk. But that’s where we are. At @IREHR we've tracked 253 different groups that attracted 1,314,899 members. That’s up 68,191 since YESTERDAY. These are real people putting real pressure on real legislators. They are effectively organizing to get governors and legislators to repeal stay-at-home directives.