How Trump’s internet built and broadcast the Capitol insurrection
US national news
June 17, 2021
Trump supporters organized and attended the January 6 US Capitol insurrection, according to The New York Times, Recode and NBC
Many of the hundreds of people who have been arrested for participating in the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol building were long-time supporters of former president Donald Trump, according to fact-checkers and reporters. Some of the people who participated in the attacks were named as “unindicted co-conspirators” in Capitol riot indictments and according to legal experts, undercover agents cannot be named as unindicted co-conspirators.
Photo via @orlandosentinelTrump supporters organized and attended the January 6 US Capitol insurrection, according to The New York Times, Recode and NBC
What you need to know
- On Tuesday, Tucker Carlson commented on the fact that some of the people who participated in the attacks are being named as “unindicted co-conspirators” in indictments.
- Legal experts say the term “unindicted co-conspirator” is common and the law forbids the government from naming undercover officers or informants as such in legal proceedings.
Records Show Fervent Trump Fans Fueled US Capitol Takeover
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"The insurrectionist mob that showed up at the president’s behest and stormed the U.S. Capitol was overwhelmingly made up of longtime Trump supporters, including Republican Party officials, GOP political donors, far-right militants, white supremacists, members of the military and adherents of the QAnon myth that the government is secretly controlled by a cabal of Satan-worshiping pedophile cannibals." – NBC
“Our president wants us here.” QAnon, Proud Boys, elected officials, regular Americans: The Capitol rioters had different origins, but one allegiance.
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"To followers of QAnon, the convoluted collection of conspiracy theories that falsely claims the country is dominated by deep-state bureaucrats and Democrats who worship Satan, the word 'storm' had particular resonance. Adherents have often referred to a coming storm, after which Mr. Trump would preside over a new government order.
In online discussions, some QAnon followers and militia groups explored which weapons and tools to bring." – The New York Times
More than 200 people have been charged in connection to the Capitol insurrection.
NPR examined court documents, public records and social media to figure out: Who joined the mob? What did they do? And why?
Here's what we found.
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"There were those with connections to extremist groups or fringe ideas. At least 13 defendants appear to have expressed support for QAnon, the pro-Trump conspiracy theory.
At least 15 of the defendants appear to have links to the Proud Boys, a far-right gang. The group was recently declared a terrorist group in Canada. Their values have been widely described as racist, misogynist, anti-immigrant and hateful against other minority groups." – NPR
“If They Won’t Hear Us, They Will Fear Us”: How The Capitol Assault Was Planned On Facebook buzzfeednews.com/article/davidm via
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Peter Aldhous is a reporter for BuzzFeed News.
Tucker Carlson made false statements about the January 6 insurrection
Analysis: Tucker Carlson’s tinfoil-hat theory blaming the FBI for Jan. 6
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Undercover agents cannot be named as unindicted co-conspirators, according to legal experts
Guys, agents and informants basically *can't* be co-conspirators, and this has been the law for a while. E.g., United States v. Rodriguez, 765 F. 2d 1546, 1152 (11th Cir. 1985) ("[A]gents and informers cannot be conspirators.")
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Brad Heath is a reporter for Reuters.
THREAD: (1) Prosecutors commonly use generic terms -- "co-conspirator 1" or "person-2" or "individual-3" or what have you -- and the reasons are different from what has said as the basis for his latest conspiracy theory.
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Elie Honig is a senior legal analyst at CNN and a former federal and state prosecutor.
(2) Most importantly, "co-conspirator 1" can not and does not refer to an FBI agent, or an FBI informant or cooperator, or any kind of person acting on behalf of the federal government.
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(3) This is (among other reasons) because under federal law, a person acting on behalf of the FBI (an undercover, or an informant / cooperator) is *not* legally liable for conspiracy. If a person acts on behalf of law enforcement, they're legally not part of the criminal plot.
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(4) So no prosecutor would use "co-conspirator 1" to describe a person who was a government agent or actor at the time of the charged crime.
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(5) "Co-conspirator 1" most often does mean "person who we believe is part of the crime itself (again, not an FBI agent) who we haven't yet charged and don't want to tip off."
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(6) "Co-conspirator 1" also can mean "person we suspect is criminally liable (again, not an FBI agent or actor) but we don't quite have enough (yet) to charge as part of the conspiracy."
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(7) Sometimes a person starts off as "co-conspirator 1" and then cooperates after arrest. But the key is the person's status *at the time of the crime.* If the person was acting as a government agent at the time of the crime, they would not be described as "co-conspirator 1."
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Related
Information gathered from images of people who stormed the US Capitol suggests the participants have links to far-right movements, according to The New York Times, Buzzfeed News and other fact-checkers.
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