I've painstakingly gone through six weeks of my trial notes to put this synopsis together, focusing primarily on what you have not been seeing or hearing from the mainstream media about the Oath Keepers trial. I hope you'll share this widely and help get the word out.
Also available on all major podcast platforms.
Part 1 of transcript below:
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Warning . . . the is going to be long, but don’t allow the length of this podcast to scare you away. Take it in smaller bites if you need to . . . but the information here is not being told by the mainstream press agencies covering the Oath Keepers trial. I know . . . because I’ve been sitting in the media room with them every day - for six weeks - since the beginning of this trial.
This information needs to be known, and be shared. I’m not going to read or cover every moment of every testimony in this trial, but I’m going to try and hit the most important aspects that have not been covered by the MSM, so . . . here we go . . .
First of all . . . the most important lesson we’ve learned from this trial . . .
Is that scary words by 15-20 unarmed ex-military and retired law enforcement officers equals a conspiracy to “occupy DC“ . . .
To overthrow the government of United States” . . .
To “storm the Capitol” . . .
And to “prevent the certification of the 2020 election.”
This, by a group of . . . did I mention . . . “unarmed” retirees - men AND women - including disabled veterans and geriatrics . . .
Who spent 19 full minutes inside the Capitol Building . . .
Only AFTER hundreds of people had already breached barricades, doors, and windows, and then forced open the east side doors from the inside . . . which three of these defendants passed through . . .
AFTER the Vice President and Congress had already been evacuated . . .
THEN, all five of these defendants left the Capitol grounds, hours before the violence at the west tunnel was over . . .
So they could be back at their hotel rooms before the Mayor’s curfew kicked in at 6pm . . .
They are the literal definition of criminal scofflaws carrying out a well-planned, unarmed seditious conspiracy against two fully-armed law enforcement agencies, tactical units of the FBI, ATF, US Marshals, and embedded Army special forces with “shoot-to-kill” orders.
Finally - and most significantly - we have learned from this trial that the FBI had a minimum of THREE confidential human sources inside the Oath Keepers’ organization, who’d notified them, in advance, that these 15-20 unarmed individuals were going to follow hundreds of actual violent rioters . . .
Who the government has made NO EFFORT WHATSOEVER to connect to the Oath Keepers’ alleged conspiracy . . .
THIS, despite the fact the government has called them both the “LEADERS” and the “tip of the spear” of the riots on January 6th . . .
Even though not a single Oath Keeper was even present, or has been shown to have any connection to those who breached that first barricade at 12:42pm . . .
Even though not a single Oath Keeper was even present, or has been shown to have any connection to those who broke windows and opened that first door on the west side at 2:12pm, through which hundreds of protestors first entered the Capitol Building . . .
Even though not a single Oath Keeper was even present, or has been shown to have any connection to those who breached barricades on the east side of the Capitol . . .
Even though not a single Oath Keeper was even present, or has been shown to have any connection to those dozens of protestors who forced open the east side doors . . . from the inside . . .
YET, somehow . . . the Oath Keepers were - according to the government’s opening argument by the lead prosecutor, Assistant US Attorney Jeffrey Nestler . . . and I quote . . . “They were the leaders.”
Except . . . they weren’t. Not only has the government - even after that assertion - made no connection of the Oath Keepers to the thousands who preceded them to Capitol Hill . . . the government has never once made a single attempt - over six weeks - to establish a conspiratorial connection . . . or any connection at all . . . to those violent and destructive perpetrators who actually LED the Capitol breach . . . long before the Oath Keepers even arrived on scene.
Seriously. That’s the entirety of the government’s case against the five individuals in this first seditious conspiracy trial.
Can you say . . . “scapegoat?” Maybe . . . “political patsies?”
——
Okay . . . not really. I’m going to share more. First of all, let me get my quick commercial announcement out of the way:
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——
Okay . . . back to the Oath Keepers trial:
I say SIX WEEKS . . . but it’s really now SEVEN WEEKS, counting jury selection, but in terms of actual trial days . . . opening arguments, witness testimonies, cross-examinations, and hours worth of motions and legal wrangling between the government and defense teams, we’ve thus far had 25 actual days of courtroom time . . . and I’ve been there everyday.
So, what have I seen? Here’s a quick review of the indisputable facts presented over those 25 days:
Yes . . . in the government’s opening statement, AUSA Nestler said, and I quote:
“On January 6th of 2021 at around 2:35 p.m., the crowd on the east side steps of the United States Capitol parted as a group of 14 people, dressed similarly in military style combat gear, moving similarly in military style formation with their hands on the person in front, marched up the stairs towards the doors of the Capitol . . . As they approached, the crowd cheered for them, yelling, "Oath Keepers, Oath Keepers." They were the leaders.”
Except, they weren’t.
Indisputably, when first barricades were breached - by a couple hundred violent provocateurs - who were then followed by thousands of peaceful protestors - all of these Oath Keepers were performing their assigned PERSONAL SECURITY DETAILS, (PSDs) for various VIP speakers for the several legally pre-licensed and permitted side-stages, both on the Capitol grounds and at other locations. Events permitted by both National Parks and the Capitol Police. Some, scheduled and permitted even BEFORE Trump’s J6 rally at The Ellipse was even announced on December 19th, 2020.
We know this, because we have seen the signed permits presented into evidence . . . signed and issued by the Capitol Police . . . as presented and testified to by the events’ organizer.
We also know that some of those VIP speakers in the Oath Keepers’ PSDs are individuals that half the country consider politically and personally despicable . . . such as:
Roger Stone
Ali Alexander
Alex Jones
Dr. Simone Gold
George Papadopolous
Brandon Straka . . .
. . . and many others . . . including congressional leaders and other elected officials. Some of these other events and stages included Oath Keeper PSDs for . . . Latinos for Trump, Blacks for Trump, and Global Frontline Nurses.
In addition to those scheduled events, fliers and online announcements also included:
Freedom Rally: 10am to 4pm
Wild Protest: 10am to 5pm (“On the Capitol lawn and steps”)
Jericho March: 10:45am to 12:30pm
March for Trump: 1pm
We also know . . . from the testimony of several of the government’s own witnesses - including several FBI Special Agents - the Oath Keepers were carrying no firearms while in The District. Neither at The Ellipse rally or at The Capitol.
This is further verified and indisputable, because these Oath Keepers were all given VIP Passes from the Secret Service to sit inside the security zone for Trump’s speech at The Ellipse, and therefore had to pass through the full Secret Service security check - including magnetometer screening.
We know - beyond dispute - that these Oath Keepers were only headed toward the Capitol grounds, BECAUSE they were escorting their VIP protectees to the additional scheduled events - where staging and sound system was set up early that morning - as permitted by Capitol Police ON THE CAPITOL GROUNDS.
We also know - from the testimony of the Oath Keepers’ contracted operational leader that day - Michael Greene - the additional events didn’t happen, because, by the time he arrived at the Capitol . . . and I quote . . . “There was a f-cking riot.”
NOTE . . . BEFORE the Oath Keepers and their operational leader arrived at the Capitol with their escorted VIP speakers . . . the riot was already fully-engaged. YET . . . somehow . . . THEY were the “leaders” and the “tip of the spear” of the violence and property damage that took place that day.
——
We also know . . . without any dispute . . . Oath Keeper founder and leader, Stewart Rhodes, believed that the 2020 election results were “unconstitutional” and fraudulent. He also believed and often preached to the Oath Keepers that Trump needed to invoke the Insurrection Act - calling upon the country’s military forces and private militias to prevent that alleged unconstitutional transfer of power from Trump’s administration to Joe Biden.
Rhodes - a Yale Law School grad - also wrote two OPEN LETTERS to Trump, stating what he believed were the legal justifications for invoking the Insurrection Act, and literally begging Trump to do so . . . to save our Republic . . . and even saying, if he would, his Oath Keepers would be there to literally take up arms on his side.
To be clear . . . his admonition for Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act, and the promised Oath Keepers’ participation was CONDITIONAL upon Trump’s taking that action.
That said, the government also presented ample communications by Rhodes and responses from other Oath Keepers that if Trumped “FAILED” or “pussied out” . . . they would ultimately be forced to fight a “civil war” against the opposition forces - even the Biden administration . . . if the day came that THEY THEMSELVES invoked the Insurrection Act against America’s “patriots.”
The problem with the government’s case, is that January 6th was NOT that ‘date certain’ in which the Oath Keepers would take up arms against the government moving against those Patriots.
IN FACT . . . what the government conveniently skipped over and left out of all those hundreds of Signal chats, Facebook messages, GoToMeeting calls, and the like . . . were the actual PLANNING communications for their scheduled PSDs on J6.
Their actual “mission” on the days of January 5th and 6th.
——
Let’s now look at the testimonies of a few of the government’s own witnesses:
On DAY TWO of the trial the government took FBI Special Agent Michael Palian through a relentless succession of messages between various Oath Keepers using raucous, inflammatory, often anti-government and “armed rebellion” language . . . but when Thomas Caldwell’s attorney, David Fischer was cross examining Agent Palian, he got him to admit that the “op plan” they retrieved from Caldwell had nothing to do with January 6th, but in fact was concerned with ANTIFA, at other DC events.
Agent Palian didn’t want to admit it, but Fischer showed it to him in their own FBI affidavit . . . and got Palian to read it aloud. Fischer then asked of it was ENTIRELY about Antifa?
Palian responded, “that's what it says.”
——
On DAY THREE, the government called former Oath Keeper John Zimmerman as their witness. Despite the fact he had left the Oath Keepers over Rhodes’ conspiratorial language, he admitted on cross examination . . .
The Quick Reaction Force, (QRF), on the day of the Million MAGA March in November of 2020 - in DC - was only to be used if the Insurrection Act as invoked by Trump. He also said:
“What I believed the Oath Keepers were . . . we are there to support law enforcement, and provide help for anyone that needs it.”
Asked the question: “You’d agree the primary concern of the Oath Keepers was violence by Antifa and BLM?”
His answer: “Yes sir.”
——
Also on DAY THREE . . . Former Oath Keeper Abdullah Rasheed was called as a government witness. He’s the first of the two Confidential Human Sources utilized by the FBI. He’s the guy who recorded an Oath Keepers conference call and submitted it to the FBI. A call with more of the same inflammatory language by Rhodes and others . . . which for some reason the FBI never acted upon until AFTER J6.
On cross-exam, he is forced to admit that he had gone by 6 different names since 2007 . . . or “30-40 if you count my online names.”
Then, the bombshell was dropped, as he was eventually compelled to admit that he was a convicted felon, for . . . wait for it . . . aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Interestingly, only myself and Politico reported that Rasheed is a convicted child molester and serial name-changer. All other MSM sources completely skipped over these and other details of this bizarre, weird human . . . each presenting him as a credible witness for the government.
——
On DAY FOUR and FIVE . . . FBI Special Agent Byron Cody takes the court through a series of those rah-rah inflammatory messages between various Oath Keepers, only to be forced during cross-exam to acknowledge what he’d conveniently left out during direct examination by the government . . .
Those chat slides exclusively discussing inclusion of qualified medics coming from various states, and security ops for certain VIPs . . . including basic operational and organizational concerns for leadership roles on J6 . . . including a list and maps of scheduled events and stages where the OKs would be needed for security on J6. Clearly establishing why the OKs were to be in DC on 6th.
Agent Cody also acknowledges only 15 to 20 actual Oath Keeper members were in the Capitol area on January 6th. (That’s some insurrection group, huh?)
The MSM articles all leave those details out of their stories - only reporting the bravado language presented by the government.
——
Also on DAY FIVE . . . FBI Special Agent Justin Eller took the court through more inflammatory message slides - particularly comments made by defendant Jessica Watkins, like:
“If Biden gets the steal . . . Our neck is already in the noose.”
“I hope the training will help me be okay with dying for country.” (This message, on 11/17/20 … Before J6 was even announced, on December 19th.)
But when pressed, under cross, Agent Eller was forced to admit that all those messages were dealing with two other events in DC.
The MSM largely fails to report the answers made under cross examination.
——
DAY SIX . . . FBI Special Agent Joanna Abrams takes the stand, and presents more anti-government language:
Rhodes pops off with some rah-rah rhetoric about being at war with “China and its domestic proxies.” Again brings up the Insurrection Act, and the “Chinese puppet,” (Biden), and that “a bloody war may have to be fought if Trump doesn’t act.”
But . . . under cross, Agent Abrams is asked:
“In these chats, were there any specific mentions of plans for violence against the Capitol?”
Agent Abrams responds: “Not to my knowledge.”
——
Also on DAY SIX, former Oath Keeper Terry Cummings was called to the stand as a government witness. He didn’t enter the Capitol on J6, because when he got to the building, he was in need of a restroom.
Cummings - also from Florida - spent four full days with defendant Ken Harrelson and another convicted Oath Keeper not in this trial. Let’s just skip to his cross examination responses:
“Do you recall how many Oath Keepers you saw actually walking toward the Capitol from the Ellipse?”
“Perhaps 10.” (An overwhelmingly massive insurrection force, huh?)
“How many people would you estimate you could see already gathered at the Capitol when you arrived?”
“Rough estimate . . . several thousand.”
“Did you see any Oath Keepers scaling the walls on the west side?”
“No.”
“Did you ever hear of any human being associated with the Oath Keepers, [at anytime], from any Oath Keepers’ planning, discussing or ordering rioting or invasion of Capitol.”
“No.”
“Did you witness any Oath Keeper with firearms in DC?”
“No.”
“To your knowledge, was there ever any discussion of an intention to bring the QRF into the District?”
“No.”
(This . . . folks . . . was a PROSECUTION WITNESS, who was only doing damage to the government’s case for “conspiracy.”)
During Cummings’ cross by Ken Harreslon’s attorney, Brad Geyer . . .
“During the entire trip [from Florida to DC and back] - from January 4th thru 7th - was there ever any conversation with Dolan and Harrelson of insurrection?”
“No.”
“Any discussion of attacking the Capitol?”
“No.”
“Attacking police?”
“No.”
“Attacking elected representatives?”
“No.”
“When you heard Kelly Meggs say that the Capitol had been breached, did he say, “THEY have breached the Capitol,” or “WE have breached the Capitol.”
“THEY.”
AGAIN . . . folks . . . this was a PROSECUTION witness.
——
DAY SEVEN . . . FBI Special Agent Kelsey Harris - in charge of investigating Ken Harrelson spent much of his time introducing more rah-rah messages on which Harrelson was not even present, as he wasn’t even added to the Signal “DC OP Chat” until the evening of January 3rd - the night he was finally talked into going to DC . . . specifically to provide security services for VIPs at the permitted Capitol lawn stage.
Harris does show a video of Florida OKs doing weapons training back in September of 2020 . . . at a legally licensed training center . . . two months before the election, and long before the announced rally on J6. Ken is seen firing an AR-15.
He also shows video of Ken loading a luggage cart with gun cases into the Virginia hotel on J5, where the QRF for J6 was located. (Legal use, transport, and storage of firearms - all the way from Florida to Virginia.)
Interestingly, the government brought an AR-15 into the courtroom as evidence, but it wasn’t Harrelson’s AR. In fact, it wasn’t an AR owned by any of the defendants in THIS trial - but of someone else in another trial.
Why didn’t Harris present Ken’s AR? Because - as Agent Harris testified - when he and his team arrested Ken . . . they didn’t confiscate any of his guns!
When Ken’s attorney crossed Agent Harris, he admitted that Ken wasn’t on those earlier OK chat sessions, before January 3rd, and also that Ken has not had any kind of social media accounts since 2014 - therefore couldn’t have been involved in any of those communications, either.
——
DAY EIGHT And NINE . . . FBI Special Agent Sylvia Hilgeman takes the stand. Her primary focus was investigating the QRF, itself. Obviously, she has to run through a litany of inflammatory chats. These, are by Thomas Caldwell . . . the only non-Oath Keeper in this trial . . . and these statement were all made before J6 was even announced or planned:
“If we cannot get Trump another term, we are well and truly f-cked.”
“It’s either kill or be killed.”
“I don't want to live in a communist country.”
“We could have burned Congress to the ground if we had wanted to.”
(IF we had wanted to.)
“Maybe I should be planning a much bigger op, like when we have to roll into town to actually save the Republic.”
“This could be the last Thanksgiving we ever have.”
(Pre Thanksgiving. J6 hadn’t even been announced yet.)
Pretty bad stuff. Nothing to do with January 6th . . . but awful language from the 27 year Naval vet and former FBI operative.
THEN . . . out of no where . . . The prosecution begins showing ‘sexting’ messages between Stewart Rhodes and his attorney, Kellye Sorrell - made during their travels from TX to DC. Completely salacious and immaterial to the case.
(What do you think the MSM headlines were about that day?)
On cross, defense attorney Fischer asks Agent Hilgeman:
“You’re aware the government’s theory is that the QRF was to attack the Capitol?”
“I don’t recall any messages that the QRF was specifically for attacking the Capitol.”
(What?)
Agent Hilgeman then “clarifies” that the QRF was meant to . . . “prevent Biden from becoming president,” and to “occupy DC.”
(Seriously? Only 15 to 20 Oath Keepers had a plan to “OCCUPY DC?”)
Fischer continues to get agent to acknowledge that despite any of Caldwell’s more inflammatory rhetoric - like - “We could have burned down the Capitol” at an event prior to J6, he never followed through with any of his shit-talking.
——
Lee Bright - attorney for Rhodes take over the cross:
Bright: “You’re aware none of these defendants brought firearms into the District?”
Hilgeman: “Correct”
Bright “So the armed rebellion wasn’t armed?”
Agent: “The armed rebellion wasn’t over. I believe they were prepared to fight the next day.”
Bright: “But when those arms finally left the hotel, they were taken back to the their places of origin.”
Agent: “Correct, but I believe the armed rebellion wasn’t over.”
FBI Special Agent Hilgeman doesn't seem to understand that she cannot FIRST present video evidence of OKs packing up, checking out, and heading home on the 7th, and then also claim, “The armed rebellion wasn’t over. I believe they were prepared to fight the next day.”
——
Stanley Woodward - counsel for Terry Meggs took over the cross of Agent Hilgeman and shows her chat messages that the Government conveniently skipped over, again - these, next to and in the midst of the ones they did show.
They included:
-Questions about permits for other events
-Mentions of permit times and locations
-Mentions of VIP security details
-Warnings for OKs not to fall for psyops and get drawn into bad things
-Mention of PSD for General Flynn
-Then he shows lists of several other VIP rally speakers and specific events at which they’d either provide PSD or event security
-Messages in which the OKs consider Capitol Police to be the “good guys,” and warning all OKs not to bring firearms into DC.
Agent Hilgeman agrees that all these were accurate portrayals of messages in those OK chat groups. Hilgeman acknowledges that of all the maps they were sharing about security details, NONE of those included maps of inside the Capitol Building.
This has been the Government’s tactic the entire trial . . . show only the bad and the ugly, while purposefully skipping over those messages in the same chats groups and message boards that reveals the OKs actual plans for the day of January 6th.
Which of these have seen in the MSM accounts of this trial?
I bet you already know.
——
DAY TEN . . . New witness . . . Captain Ronald Ortega of US Capitol Police, who describes his day on J6, with various video and photo exhibits of how the day unfolded. From the earliest bike rack barricade breaches, to the west terrace battle line, the breach underneath the scaffolding, the west windows broken and doors opened by rioters, the Capitol filling up with THOSE protesters, and then THOSE protestors opening the east side doors.
Except . . . in those videos and photos . . . one group was missing, altogether: The Oath Keepers.
They continue to show Capitol CCTV videos of barrier breaches all around the Capitol grounds - including violence on the west terrace - deliberately prejudicing the jury with scenes of violence and mayhem in which the OKs were neither present or involved.
When cross exams begin, it was simply a matter of the defense making the point that no OKs were present at those breaches and battle lines with police. Attorney Geyer did elicit one interesting response from Captain Ortega:
Geyer asked: “Are you an expert on crowd size?”
Captain Ortega responded : “No, I am not, but I can tell you it was the largest protest crowd I’ve ever seen at the Capitol, and on the west side the number was as large as at any inauguration I have seen.”
That kind of dispels the long held MSM narrative of only 10-30,0000 people on J6.
——
DAY TEN continues with the government calling up another so-called “cooperative witness.” Former Oath Keeper Jason Dolan . . . who drove the vehicle from Florida to DC with defendant Ken Harrelson and the previous cooperative government witness, Terry Cummings.
Dolan took a plea deal on a lesser conspiracy charge - last year - before the superseding indictment of “seditious conspiracy” was leveled against these defendant back in January of this year. He took that plea deal over a year ago, and is hoping that plea and his testimony will earn him a prison sentence of only 5 to 7 years . . . rather than decades.
Think about it . . . he was convicted over a year ago . . . yet still not sentenced.
One would assume his testimony to be extremely hostile to these defendants, for him to garner leniency in his ultimate sentencing. (On a side note: The same judge handing this case - Judge Mehta - is the one who took Dolan’s plea and who will be sentencing him.)
Let’s not go through AUSA Nestler’s scripted and rehearsed direct examination, and go straight to the cross exams:
——
DAY ELEVEN, and Jason Dolan is still on the stand.
Linder: “Was it your understanding that members of the OKs were trying to follow the law.” (with regards to firearms)
Dolan: “Yes”
Linder: “Did you try and follow the law?”
Dolan: “Yes”
Linder: “At the end of the day, after Trump had not invoked the Insurrection Act, what did you do?”
Dolan: “Went back to the hotel.”
Geyer: “Are you thinking about disrupting the certification of the college while you were standing there? [with VIPs]
Dolan: “No”
Dolan also acknowledges that in the four days spent with Harrelson and Cummings - from FL to DC and back - there was never any discussion of insurrection, going into the Capitol, storming the Capitol, violence against police, or stopping the certification of the election.
——
DAY TWELVE . . . the government calls FBI Special Agent Whitney Drew to the stand. Her special investigative focus was on the actual communications between OKs on the day of J6. Those began early morning - the first at 6:27am, asking about the legal knife blade length allowed to be carried in DC. (3 inches)
Mostly presented were message slides about what attire to wear, early morning prep, and other pre-rally chatter:
“Bring something to put on your noggin’. Antifa likes bricks.”
Eventually - after the violence began - she presented chats of OKs commentary upon realizing they day had gone bad:
“Patriots storming closed area . . . “
“American blood flowing…officers down”
“Pence is doing nothing…”
“Reinforcements inbound to Capitol…”
‘Flash grenade explosions now going off…”
‘Patriots have stormed the Capitol according to Gateway…”
“The Patriots are taking it into their own hands. We’ve had enough” (Rhodes)
“Next comes our Lexington…” (Rhodes)
‘Where are you? Pence has punked out…”
‘Patriots in Capitol.”
“They have taken ground at the Capitol.”
“We need to regroup any members who are not on mission.”
At some point in the narrative, I wrote this into my daily tweetstorm from the media room:
“AUSA Nester is moving at rapid pace, bouncing from format to format - ostensibly in chronological sync - and Agent Drew is mostly confirming every question he asks . . . just as quickly. It’s impossible to keep up with the speed of the narrative. He is attempting to recreate - with the speed and changing evidence formats - the chaos of the experience in and around the Capitol, mixing in the “Rah-Rah” “We’re in the Capitol!” language of various OKs. This is an effective psyop on the jury itself. And that’s a fact, regardless of how you feel about the OKs guilt or innocence.”
When cross exams finally begin, the various defense attorneys have to begin showing - from the presented evidence - that their clients weren’t either there or involved in the melee scenes the government presented - this, despite their often rah-rah language.
Fischer - for Calwell - goes back to a government presented photo showing Caldwell at the Peace fountain at the time of the breach of Capitol - which was NOT a restricted space that day.
Agent Drew agrees . . . yet Fischer had to force her to admit this was the evidence presented BY the government, saying “This is YOUR evidence.”
She assents.
——
DAY THIRTEEN . . . Agent Drew is back on the stand. Attorney Lee Bright - for Rhodes - takes over her cross exam . . . and he drops the hammer:
Bright gets Agent Drew to admit that she DID NOT put together that long media presentation by the government on the previous day. She did not individually select the messages, videos, or content of the presentation. She simply sat on the stand and validated those videos, photos, and message slides the government selectively put together.
“That is correct.”
Bright get her to admit that she was unaware of OK security operational leader, Michael Greene’s duties that day - with regards to overseeing the various security details he was overseeing.
How can this be? Wasn’t her primary investigative focus on the activities of the OKs on that day - and she didn’t know what Greene was doing?
Bright gets Agent Drew to admit - because of cellular signal overload - most of those messages presented on previous day were neither seen or delivered . . . for up to 5 and half hours after being sent. THIS, according to the actual mobile phone companies data logs - as obtained and presented by the FBI.
Bright: “Are you familiar with the concept of a QRF?”
Agent: “Yes.” - (She agrees it is a “reaction” force, not an “offensive” force.)
Bright: “Have you seen a single chat of any kind that indicates the QRF was ever called in.”
Agent: “Based on my knowledge, they did remain in VA.”
Bright: “At no point is there a message, email, or chat containing a direct order for the OKs to enter the Capitol?”
Agent: “That’s correct.”
Bright: “No such order from Mr. Rhodes?”
Agent: “I did not see an order from Mr. Rhodes.”
Bright: “Did Rhodes enter the capitol? . . . have a bull horn? . . . did he give any orders? . . . did he tear down any barriers?”
Agent: “Not to my knowledge.”
Later when Stanley Woodward took over the cross exam, came what I consider the most significant moment of the day:
Stuck right n the middle of all the bombastic and chaotic messages, the government once again, purposefully skipped over one in particular:
“We need to stick to the objective, and protect those in the building from violence . . . including members and staff.”
Excuse me? PROTECT congress members and staff? Then . . .
“I think the police are going to be overwhelmed . . . too many people . . . “
And . . .
“This is f-cking ANTIFA . . . none of our OKs were allowed to carry backpacks . . . they’re using lumber . . . this is a f-cking set-up!”
——
DAY FOURTEEN . . . Judge Mehta greets everyone with the bad news of the day, regarding Stewart Rhodes having tested positive for COVID. He says that it is the Virginia Detention Center’s policy for a 10-day quarantine, but is hoping that they will allow for the CDC policy of only 5 days. After discussion about possible ways to get around this disruption - by video links to jail - and such, court was dismissed for the day.
——
DAY FIFTEEN . . . It is established that the VA jail holding Rhodes will not cooperate with a video hook-up. As such Rhodes has decided to waive his rights to be in the courtroom for what they are are calling a series of “inconsequential witnesses.”
Inconsequential to HIS case, in particular. Judge Mehta conducts a live phone call waiver hearing with Rhodes - from the jail - and then the trail proceeds without Rhodes.
Then, one of the most hostile witnesses of the trial was called. Ryan Salky - a Citadel grad, former Marine, former Charleston Police officer, then was with the USCP on J6 (Now he works as deputy sheriff for New Hanover County in NC.)
He was one of the two USCP officers at the east side door way who stood their ground at that doorway for the duration of the event - taking assault after assault from bear spray, pepper spray, flag poles, 2x4s, and hand-to-hand fighting. He literally hates everyone who came to the Capitol that day. Basically said so . . .
When asked under cross if he saw any “peaceful” people mixed in with the rioters that day, he refused to acknowledge that he ever saw ANY peaceful people, from his perspective.
Despite the evidence that the USCP had approved permits for other events on the Capitol grounds that day, he refused to acknowledge that he’d been made aware of any scheduled events at the Capitol that day.
(Hmmmmm . . . )
Bottom line . . . Deputy Salky wasn’t having any part of anything presented by the defense. The only thing we know for certain, is that Salky was never attacked or assaulted by any OK that day - going in or out the east side doors.
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DAY SIXTEEN . . . a series of those “inconsequential” witnesses are presented . . .
The first . . . Secret Service Agent Lanelle Hawa who was working as liaison between SS and Congress on January 6, and the primary protectee of the SS that day was VP Pence and his family, who were all at the Capitol on J6.
Pence was evacuated before the OKs even arrived. No defense cross exams.
Then . . . The government called Officer Christopher Owens. Metropolitan Police Department officer. He was assigned to their Civil Disturbance Unit on J6. The government took him through a video sequence in which his CDU team was defending a hallway leading to the Senate Chamber doorway. Violent struggle. No OKs involved or captured in the video of that struggle.
Two witnesses’ testimonies already completed that morning. Neither witness had any interactions with these defendants on J6, nor were they asked any questions about the OKs. But . . . the jury must be prejudiced . . . they were the LEADERS . . . right?
Then the government called Jason McIntyre. He works for the ‘Architect of the Capitol.’ Their department oversees maintenance, care, repair, and major construction projects at Capitol building. Images were shown of the damage done to the east side Capitol doors.
$10,063.00 to repair inner east doors. $24,175.00 to repair Columbus doors.
No further questions. No cross from defense. No OKs participated in the damage to those doors, only the implied guilt.
——
DAY SEVENTEEN . . . Stewart Rhodes is BACK in the courtroom today, and the government calls USCP Officer Harry Dunn to the stand . . .
I’ve already covered this testimony in great detail, in a previous podcast . . . in quick summary . . . Office Dunn had substantially changed his testimony about his encounter with the OKs - from his first FBI interview in May of 2021, to his second FBI interview in August of 2021.
In that first interview, Dunn explained that the OKs had set up a defensive line between himself and more agitated protestors. In the second, he denied it was the OKs, and that his encounter with the OKs was actually confrontational.
Well . . . video shows otherwise. Dunn is a liar. Video evidence proves that. Dunn is also that officer who claimed between 20 and 50 people were chanting the “N-word” at him. Yet, in the most video recorded event in the history of the world, not one single recording of that or any other “N-word” event has ever been presented . . .
And you KNOW . . . beyond any shadow of doubt . . . if there was such a recording, it would still be playing today, every time January 6th is mentioned by either the media or the government.
That recording doesn’t exist, only because IT DIDN’T HAPPEN. Officer Dunn is a liar.
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DAY SEVENTEEN continues, with one of the most confounding and prejudicial witnesses of all. The government called Edgar Tippett - district manager for the grocery store chain, Safeway.
In short . . . Tippett shows a series of financials showing year over year earnings of the Safeway stores in DC - comparing their revenues between J6 of previous years and J6 of 2021. THEN showing the massive drop in earnings on J7, directly related to the fact the Mayor of DC had declared a curfew at 6pm on J6 - shutting down all their stores by 4:30 . . . and then the fact they were not able to be restocked overnight, because delivery trucks were not allowed into the District during the curfew.
The implication . . . obviously . . . is that the actions of the OKs on J6 caused substantial losses to Safeway and other retailers . . . and why those jurors couldn’t get their favorite grocery items on J7.
——
DAY EIGHTEEN . . . Agent Harris is called back to the stand. There is another lengthy presentation of a barrage of chat messages sent by OKs on J6, including the most inflammatory of those, made by Jessica Watkins, Kelly Meggs, and Thomas Caldwell actually taking credit for, and making claims about actions which they never actually participated in.
(Really stupid examples of them running their mouths in the heat of the moment.)
Caldwell: “Sharon and I assaulted the Capitol.” Sharon, his wife, and Caldwell himself never entered the Capitol. They never assaulted anyone. This was Caldwell bloviating via message to people not even in DC watching the event from their televisions. (Really stupid.)
Messages from Watkins . . . hyperbolic rhetoric about storming capitol, the House, Senate, and fighting back cops like “spartans” - to people not in DC. None of which she ever actually did. (Really stupid.)
As I’ve shared in previous weeks of this trial, Watkins and Caldwell are their own worst enemies, having both engaged in grossly hyperbolic language, and usually about actions they didn’t actually engage in. Braggadocios bravado for those OKs back home watching on TV.
What a mess.
Finally, under cross exam, Agent Harris agrees the OKs never returned to the Capitol building after they had all gathered together outside the building, and that they had exited DC before curfew implementation, AND certainly long before the public was notified Congress was returning to the Capitol, to certify the election results.
Harris also acknowledged there is no evidence of OKs doing anything illegal or untoward after leaving the Capitol. Harris then agreed he’d never seen any order from Rhodes for OKs to enter Capitol.
To be continued . . .
