The Department of Justice appears to have collected information on anyone who liked, followed, or retweeted Donald Trump&#8217;s Twitter account — among other actions in connection to the former president&#8217;s social media — in the days leading up to the January 6 U.S. Capitol breach.
Special Counsel Jack Smith ordered a search warrant against X, formerly known as Twitter, earlier this year as part of his investigation into Trump for allegedly interfering with the 2020 presidential election and the events at the nation&#8217;s capitol just before Congress certified Joe Biden as the next president in 2021.
But after several media outlets filed a lawsuit to obtain the document and other related documents, the <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.259110/gov.uscourts.dcd.259110.22.3.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">search warrant</a> released on Monday showed federal authorities gathered a massive trove of data from users who interacted with Trump&#8217;s personal Twitter account from October 2020 to January 2021.
&#8220;All information from the &#8216;Connect&#8217; or &#8216;Notifications&#8217; tab for the account, including all lists of Twitter users who have favorited or retweeted tweets posted by the account, as well as all tweets that include the username associated with the account (i.e. &#8216;mentions&#8217; or &#8216;replies&#8217;),&#8221; the warrant reads.
The 14-page document — half of which has been redacted — has been described by American citizens as an Orwellian nightmare and a breach of privacy and a violation of their constitutional right to free speech.
Smith&#8217;s warrant also sought to access Trump&#8217;s search history on X, including drafted posts, blocks, mutes, and direct messages, while also demanding a list of all devices used to log in or access the account.
&#8220;The content of all direct messages sent from, received by, stored in draft form in, or otherwise associated&#8221; with the former president&#8217;s account, and the users Trump &#8220;has followed, unfollowed, muted, unmuted, blocked, or unblocked, and all users who have followed, unfollowed, muted, unmuted, blocked, or unblocked,&#8221; the search warrant lists.
The warrant <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/11/27/news/heavily-redacted-documents-related-to-search-warrant-for-trumps-twitter-account-released/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> included a nondisclosure order that forced X officials to keep Trump in the dark about the search. According to the New York Post, the social media company initially refused the order, claiming in a failed court challenge that the warrant violated the First Amendment and the Stored Communications Act.
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The delay resulted in the company receiving a $350,000 fine.
The Justice Department argued in another <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.259110/gov.uscourts.dcd.259110.22.4.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">heavily redacted document</a> released on Monday that the nondisclosure order &#8220;was granted based on facts showing that notifying the former president would result in destruction of or tampering with evidence, intimidation of potential witnesses, or other serious jeopardy to an investigation or delaying of trial.&#8221;
&#8220;For what appears to be the first time in its history, Twitter Inc. (&#8216;Twitter&#8217;) has filed a motion to vacate or modify an order that it not disclose the existence of a search warrant,&#8221; Smith said, adding that &#8220;there is reason to believe notification to the former president, a sophisticated actor with an expansive platform, would result in a statutorily cognizable harm.&#8221;
Trump was indicted earlier this year on multiple felony charges related to his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, including conspiring to defraud the United States, conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding, obstructing a congressional proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
He reacted to the search warrant on his Truth Social account in August, criticizing the special counsel for seeking information on his former Twitter account.
&#8220;How dare lowlife prosecutor, Deranged Jack Smith, break into my former Twitter account without informing me and, indeed, trying to completely hide this atrocity from me,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/110886100439412597" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. &#8220;What could he possibly find out that is not already known.&#8221;

Elon Musk reinstates Donald Trump’s Twitter account

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Capitol Riot

Crime

Department of Justice

Donald Trump

Jack Smith

January 6

Twitter

U.S.

A manhunt was underway on Wednesday as federal and local authorities searched through a wooded area of New Jersey for a suspect accused of <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/fbi-swat-team-hunt-ex-national-guardsman-wanted-jan-6-charges-rcna124196" target="_blank" rel="noopener">charges</a> related to the U.S. Capitol Breach on January 6.
FBI Newark SWAT officials said in an alert that authorities joined the Jamesburg Police Department and Middlesex County Prosecutors Office in search of Gregory Yetman in Helmetta, New Jersey.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/JamesburgPolice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JamesburgPolice</a> in NJ:
&quot;FBI Newark SWAT, Jamesburg Police Department, and Middlesex County Prosecutors Office, are currently searching for a man named Gregory Yetman, wanted in connection with the January 6th attack on the US Capitol, in Helmetta, NJ. We are asking the public… <a href="https://t.co/iP1jeS9Yxz">pic.twitter.com/iP1jeS9Yxz</a>
&mdash; Johnathon O&#39;Halloran (@JohnnyOHally) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnnyOHally/status/1722297351635693847?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 8, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
It is not immediately clear what specific charges Yetman faces. However, authorities labeled Yetman as &#8220;#278 AFO,&#8221; which stands for &#8220;Assault on a Federal Officer,&#8221; before unmasking his identity, according to <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12726263/Gregory-Yetman-Jan-6-manhunt-FBI.html?ns_mchannel=rss&amp;ns_campaign=1490&amp;ito=1490&amp;utm_source=dlvr.it&amp;utm_medium=twitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports</a>.
Yetman, 46, allegedly fled into the woods around 9 a.m. as police were trying to serve a warrant.
Authorities described him as a white male who may be armed, and said that he was wearing a red jacket and baseball cap.
Authorities instructed the Spotswood Public Schools to shelter in place and closed surrounding local streets as SWAT team members searched Yetman&#8217;s backyard and shed and the backyards of other nearby homes.
According to reports, Yetman served as a military police sergeant in the New Jersey National Guard until the military service honorably discharged him in March 2022.
Yetman admitted in an <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/03/02/sedition-hunters-hundreds-jan-6-rioters-pending-fbi-arrests/11283885002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">interview</a> with USA TODAY earlier this year that he was in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021. Online searchers alleged Yetman had used pepper spray while on the Capitol grounds, but he asserted he did nothing wrong and didn&#8217;t pepper-spray anyone while he was there on that day.
He said the FBI interviewed him in January 2021, but that he had not heard from federal investigators since.
&#8220;Everything&#8217;s been resolved, everything&#8217;s good,&#8221; he said.
Officials estimate approximately 2,000 people were present at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. About 800 people out of the massive crowd breached the Capitol grounds, which included some who overturned barricades, clashed with police, and stormed the building in an alleged attempt to stop the January 2021 transfer of presidential power.
Senators from the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee published a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/planned-in-plain-sight-senate-committee-lawmakers-blame-dhs-fbi-for-january-6-security-failures" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> alleging several U.S. Capitol security failures on January 6, including the possibility that federal law enforcement agencies had downplayed numerous tips threatening violence ahead of the 2020 presidential election certification.
Federal authorities admitted that there were 8 FBI Confidential Human Sources, according to a <a href="https://www.scribd.com/document/636497598/Dominic-Pezzola#" target="_blank" rel="noopener">court filing</a>, which also alleged DCMetro Police had at least 13 undercover plain-clothes agents, and some 19 informants belonged to Homeland Security Investigations, an agency under the Department of Homeland Security.
The FBI has charged more than 1,100 defendants in nearly all 50 states and the District of Columbia in relation to the Capitol Breach. Over 650 have pleaded guilty, more than 600 have been sentenced, and half received terms ranging from three days to 22 years.
Over 20 residents from New Jersey have been charged in connection to the Capitol breach, according to the Associated Press.

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2020 Election

US Capitol

A Colorado court heard opening arguments on Monday to determine whether the state can use the U.S. Constitution&#8217;s 14th Amendment &#8220;insurrection&#8221; clause to disqualify former President Donald Trump from appearing on its 2024 presidential election ballots.
&#8220;Trump incited a violent mob to attack our Capitol, to stop the peaceful transition of power,&#8221; Eric Olson, an attorney representing Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/trump-ballot-disqualification-trial-begin-colorado-2023-10-30/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> said in an opening statement before a Colorado District Court judge.
CREW filed a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/removing-trump-from-2024-ballot-would-reinforce-voter-grievances-about-elections-ga-sec-of-state-says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawsuit</a> in September to remove Trump from the ballot in Colorado under the 14th Amendment, accusing the former president of violating Section 3, which bars anyone from running for office who had previously taken an oath of office, then &#8220;engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.&#8221;
U.S. officials ratified the Amendment in 1868 in the aftermath of the Civil War during the Reconstruction Era, which was designed to represent a new birth of freedom for previously disenfranchised citizens, according to Cornell University&#8217;s Legal Information Institute.
The group argues the clause constitutionally disqualifies the leading Republican contender from the next presidential election for allegedly engaging in &#8220;insurrection&#8221; against the United States because he &#8220;incited a violent mob&#8221; in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021.
Before the crowd breached the nation&#8217;s capitol, Trump gave remarks on the Ellipse on January 6. At one point during his speech, the former president said, &#8220;I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.&#8221;
But despite Trump&#8217;s legal team arguing that those words were not a call to incite violence, Olson claimed the former president &#8220;summoned and organized the mob&#8221; to storm the U.S. Capitol.
&#8220;We are here because Trump claims, after all that, that he has the right to be president again,&#8221; Olson said. &#8220;But our Constitution, the shared charter of our nation, says he cannot do so.&#8221;
Scott Gessler, a lawyer representing Trump, dismissed the claim against the former president, saying that disqualifying Trump from the next election would set a dangerous precedent based on &#8220;legal theories that have never been embraced by a state or federal court.&#8221;
&#8220;People should be able to run for office and shouldn&#8217;t be punished for their speech,&#8221; Gessler reportedly told the court during his opening statement.
Gessler, a former secretary of state for Colorado, called the lawsuit &#8220;anti-democratic&#8221; and pointed to the &#8220;rule of democracy&#8221; election law that &#8220;errs on the side of letting people vote&#8221; in circumstances open for interpretation.
Before the trial, Trump&#8217;s legal team filed a motion to have Judge Sarah B. Wallace of the Colorado 2nd Judicial District recuse herself from the trial because she reportedly made a $100 donation to the Colorado Turnout Project in October 2022, which states on its website organizers formed it to &#8220;prevent violent insurrections.&#8221;
Wallace <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-ballot-14th-amendment-colorado-f5d6c6174476ec414208323785df6e15" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> denied the motion, claiming she didn&#8217;t recall donating to the group until the legal team filed the motion.
&#8220;I will not allow this legal proceeding to turn into a circus,&#8221; she said.
Other groups in Michigan and Minnesota have also brought similar lawsuits against Trump, but Colorado is the first to bring its challenge to trial using the measure — which has rarely been used over the last 150 years.
Colorado&#8217;s trial marks the first time it&#8217;s been used to disqualify a former president from holding public office again.
Trump faces four separate indictments along the East Coast, including charges related to hush money, classified documents, election interference, and racketeering. Trump has broadly denied any wrongdoing in the charges brought against him and has claimed politically motivated forces are targeting him in a &#8220;witch hunt&#8221; propagated by the Biden administration and Democrat prosecutors.

TOPSHOT-US-POLITICS-ELECTION-TRUMP

14th Amendment Challenge Against Trump Begins In Colorado

Colorado

Former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">President Donald Trump</a> asked a federal judge on Thursday to throw out the Washington, D.C., election interference case against him for his alleged actions in the aftermath of the 2020 election, claiming presidential immunity.
&#8220;The President of the United States sits at the heart of our system of government,&#8221; the <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.258149/gov.uscourts.dcd.258149.74.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">52-page court filing</a> to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan reads. &#8220;He is our Nation&#8217;s leader, our head of state, and our head of government. As such, the founders tasked the President — and the President alone — with the sacred obligation of &#8216;tak[ing] Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.'&#8221;
Trump&#8217;s attorneys argue that his presidential status at the time protects even duties on the &#8220;outer perimeter&#8221; of a president&#8217;s &#8220;official responsibility,&#8221; including communications made with lawmakers and Department of Justice officials to investigate his election fraud claims.
&#8220;Breaking 234 years of precedent, the incumbent administration has charged President Trump for acts that lie not just within the &#8216;outer perimeter,&#8217; but at the heart of his official responsibilities as President,&#8221; the defense motion states. &#8220;In doing so, the prosecution does not, and cannot, argue that President Trump&#8217;s efforts to ensure election integrity, and to advocate for the same, were outside the scope of his duties.&#8221;
&#8220;Instead, the prosecution falsely claims that President Trump&#8217;s motives were impure —  that he purportedly &#8216;knew&#8217; that the widespread reports of fraud and election irregularities were untrue but sought to address them anyway,&#8221; Trump&#8217;s attorneys wrote in the motion.
&#8220;But as the Constitution, the Supreme Court, and hundreds of years of history and tradition all make clear, the President&#8217;s motivations are not for the prosecution or this Court to decide. Rather, where, as here, the President&#8217;s actions are within the ambit of his office, he is absolutely immune from prosecution.&#8221;
Trump was indicted by Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith on multiple felony charges related to his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
&#8220;The attack on our nation&#8217;s capital on January 6, 2021, was an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy,&#8221; Smith said. &#8220;As described in the indictment, it was fueled by lies, lies by the defendant, targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the U.S. government — the nation&#8217;s process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election.&#8221;
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The indictment was made public on August 1, which accused Trump of lying about the results of the election.
&#8220;These claims were false, and the defendant knew that they were false,&#8221; the indictment stated. &#8220;But the defendant repeated and widely disseminated — to make his knowingly false claims appear legitimate, create an intense national atmosphere of mistrust and anger, and erode public faith in the administration of the election.&#8221;
Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges, asserting his innocence, and calling the indictment against him an example of &#8220;persecution of a political opponent.&#8221;

Former President Donald Trump Attends Start Of Civil Fraud Trial In New York City

Trump Cites ‘Presidential Immunity’ In Request To Dismiss Election Interference Charges

Trump Cites 'Presidential Immunity' In Request To Dismiss Election Interference Charges

Washington D.C.

A former senior FBI official told House lawmakers the bureau conducted an internal audit after losing track of how many informants and other sources were involved in the January 6 U.S. Capitol breach.
Steven D&#8217;Antuono, former assistant director-in-charge of the Washington Field Office, told the House Judiciary Committee during a closed-door testimony in June that his office learned there had been confidential human sources (CHS) from various field offices, as well as other informants who went to the nation&#8217;s Capitol on their own accord, according to a Tuesday <a href="https://judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/republicans-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2023-09-19-jdj-to-wray-re-chs-follow-up.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> sent to FBI Director Christopher Wray about the bureau&#8217;s use of confidential sources.
When asked by Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) during a hearing on June 7, 2023, if D&#8217;Antuono knew about the sources and that the FBI knew ahead of time they would be present among the crowd of thousands of protestors, he responded with &#8220;that is my belief, yeah.&#8221;
&#8220;D&#8217;Antuono explained that due to the large number of CHSs present at the Capitol, the [Washington Field Office] asked FBI Headquarters &#8216;to do a poll or put out something to people saying w[ere] any CHSs involved&#8217; so the FBI could try to ascertain how many CHSs had been in attendance,&#8221; the letter reads.
D&#8217;Antuono said his office &#8220;started getting responses back&#8221; after contacting the bureau&#8217;s headquarters.
The committee disclosed one example from D&#8217;Antuono, who recalled that a source from the Kansas City Field Office had allegedly been in contact with his &#8220;handler&#8221; while &#8220;they were in the crowd, I think, saying that they were going in. They were trying to stop some of the action happening, and they left or whatnot.&#8221;
&#8220;This new information is extremely concerning,&#8221; Jordan wrote in the letter. &#8220;It suggests that the FBI cannot adequately track the activities and operations of its informants, and that it lost control of its CHSs present at the Capitol on January 6.&#8221;
&#8220;These revelations reinforce existing concerns, identified by Special Counsel Durham, about the FBI&#8217;s use of, and payment to, CHSs who have fabricated evidence and misrepresented information,&#8221; he added.
A spokesperson from the FBI National Press Office declined to comment when asked about the testimony by The Daily Wire.
House Judiciary Committee member Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) <a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2023/sep/19/steven-dantuono-fbi-ex-official-confirms-lawmakers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Washington Times that the FBI&#8217;s alleged involvement in the Capitol breach could have likely contributed to the events unfolding that day.
&#8220;They just knew or should have known that what was going on, and one or more of those people in order to keep their cover, could well have been part of the reason that this got so far out of hand,&#8221; Issa said. &#8220;Because the FBI won&#8217;t admit that they had 20,30 or 40 individuals on their payroll and or informants, they also certainly won&#8217;t admit how many came into the Capitol, or how many who participated in some way in promoting this illegal activity.&#8221;
House Judiciary Committee member Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) asked U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland during a hearing on Wednesday how many agents and assets were present on January 5 and January 6.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t know the answer to that question,&#8221; Garland responded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
MASSIE: “How many agents or assets of the government were present on January 5th and January 6th.. Can you answer that now?”
GARLAND: “I don&#39;t know the answer to that question.”
MASSIE: “I think you may have just perjured yourself that you don’t know if there were any” <a href="https://t.co/a04nkeBGm9">pic.twitter.com/a04nkeBGm9</a>
&mdash; Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) <a href="https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1704529214240657482?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 20, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Speculation over the number of FBI informants present during the Capitol breach comes as the Department of Justice has charged more than 1,100 people with January 6-related federal crimes — of which over 650 have pleaded guilty, more than 600 sentenced, and half received terms ranging from three days to 22 years.
Former FBI official George Hill, who worked as a supervisory intelligence analyst for the Boston Field Office, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-fbi-official-tells-house-republicans-bureau-denied-agents-j6-riot-footage-to-protect-assets-informants-present-at-u-s-capitol" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> earlier this year the bureau denied his office&#8217;s agents access to 11,000 hours of U.S. Capitol video footage on January 6 out of fear that it would reveal the identities of possible undercover officers and confidential informants present that day.
Former Capitol Hill Police Chief Steven Sund said the FBI had at least 18 undercover agents in the January 6 crowd, in addition to the paid informants, and another estimated 20 authorities from the Department of Homeland Security, <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/19/fbi-lost-count-of-number-of-informants-at-capitol-on-jan-6-ex-official/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to The New York Post.
The outlet reported the bureau spends an average of $42 million annually in payments to its Confidential Human Sources, according to the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General.
Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) asked FBI Director Christopher Wray at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing last year if the bureau had any confidential human sources dressed as Trump supporters during the Capitol riot.
Wray stonewalled the direct question and denied FBI informants were in the crowd on January 6.
&#8220;To the extent that there&#8217;s a suggestion, for example, that the FBI&#8217;s confidential human sources or FBI employees in some way instigated or orchestrated January 6, that&#8217;s categorically false.&#8221;

Trump supporters storm Capitol building in Washington

Former FBI Official Says Bureau Lost Track Of How Many Sources, Other Informants Were Involved In Capitol Breach

Former FBI Senior Official Says Bureau Lost Track Of How Many Sources, Other Informants Were Involved In Capitol Breach

Christopher Wray

Jim Jordan

Merrick Garland

U.S. House of Representatives

Former Oath Keepers chapter leader Ray Epps, who was caught on video urging people to go into the U.S. Capitol on January 6, has been charged with disorderly or disruptive conduct in connection with the breach, according to the Associated Press.
Department of Justice authorities charged Epps with one misdemeanor count, disorderly or disruptive conduct on restricted grounds.
According to <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67807327/1/united-states-v-epps/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">court filings,</a> Epps &#8220;did knowingly, and with intent to impede and disrupt the orderly conduct of Government business and official functions, engage in disorderly and disruptive conduct in and within such proximity to, a restricted building and grounds — that is, any posted, cordoned-off, and otherwise restricted area within the United States Capitol and its grounds, where the Vice President was and would be temporarily visiting—when and so that such conduct did in fact impede and disrupt the orderly conduct of Government business and official functions, and attempted and conspired to do so.&#8221;
NBC News <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/ray-epps-subject-tucker-carlsons-jan-6-conspiracy-theories-charged-doj-rcna99836">reported</a> Epps could enter a plea deal to the charge.
Epps has long been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/why-the-ray-epps-questions-wont-go-away-despite-the-medias-best-efforts" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accused</a> by many of being an undercover federal agent who instigated some of the events of that day. He has vehemently denied the accusation.
The 62-year-old Marine veteran from Arizona is seen in multiple video clips from January 6 and the day before trying to whip up other Trump supporters to &#8220;go into the Capitol&#8221; the next day.
&#8220;I&#8217;ll say it. We need to go into the Capitol,&#8221; Epps says in one clip. At least four times on video, Epps repeats his call to action to &#8220;go into the Capitol.&#8221;
Other videos reportedly show Epps with Proud Boys leader Zachary Rehl, who deployed a chemical spray at officers, according to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/19/january-6-ray-epps-trump-00116765" target="_blank" rel="noopener">POLITICO</a>.  In May, A jury in Washington, D.C., <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/verdict-in-for-proud-boys-charged-with-january-6-seditious-conspiracy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">convicted</a> Rehl of seditious conspiracy in relation to the Capitol breach and <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/pr/two-leaders-proud-boys-sentenced-prison-seditious-conspiracy-and-other-charges-related-us">sentenced</a> him to 15 years in prison.
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An attorney for Epps said in July that federal law enforcement officials had informed his client that they intended to charge him in connection with the events of January 6.
The revelation was made in a lawsuit that Epps filed against Fox News in July that accused the network and former host Tucker Carlson of defaming him.
Buried deep in the lawsuit, Epps&#8217; lawyer said that the DOJ recently informed Epps that it plans to prosecute him. Epps&#8217; lawyer blamed Carlson for the potential forthcoming charges.
&#8220;Finally, in May 2023, the Department of Justice notified Epps that it would seek to charge him criminally for events on January 6, 2021—two-and-a-half years later,&#8221; the lawsuit said. &#8220;The relentless attacks by Fox and Mr. Carlson and the resulting political pressure likely resulted in the criminal charges.&#8221;
Fox reportedly denied liability and moved to dismiss the pending lawsuit in federal court in Delaware.
Epps <a href="https://apnews.com/article/ray-epps-capitol-riot-jan-6-fox-38748c79cd7b6916584a5db7ca87af7a">told</a> CBS in an interview earlier this year that he received numerous death threats that forced him to sell his home and relocate to the Rocky Mountains, where he and his wife were living in a recreational vehicle.
&#8220;I had to do the necessary things to keep my family safe,&#8221; Epps said.
Epps joins more than 1,100 people charged with Capitol breach-related federal crimes, of which over 650 have pleaded guilty, more than 600 were sentenced, and half received terms ranging from three days to 22 years.
Mairead Elordi and Ryan Saavedra contributed to this report.

Pro-Trump Protests get Violent over Electoral College Certification

Former Oath Keeper Ray Epps Charged With One Misdemeanor In Connection To J6 Capitol Breach

Ray Epps

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/infowars" target="_blank" rel="noopener">InfoWars</a> host Owen Shroyer received a 60-day sentence in prison on Tuesday for his role in the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6 that prosecutors claim he &#8220;helped create.&#8221;
&#8220;In the months prior to January 6, Shroyer spread election disinformation paired with violent rhetoric to hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of viewers,&#8221; prosecutors wrote in <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.234903/gov.uscourts.dcd.234903.49.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">court filings</a>.
Shroyer, the 34-year-old host of &#8220;The War Room With Owen Shroyer&#8221; on Alex Jones&#8217; media platform, never entered the federal building on that infamous day, but was still punished by prosecutors because he previously signed a deferred prosecution agreement after interrupting a House Judiciary Committee hearing for then-President Trump&#8217;s impeachment proceedings hearing in 2019.
As part of the agreement, Shroyer consented not to &#8220;utter loud, threatening, or abusive language or engage in any disorderly or disruptive conduct&#8221; anywhere on the United States Capitol Grounds or within any of the Capitol Buildings.
But according to court filings, Shroyer warned in November 2020 that if Joe Biden became president, &#8220;it&#8217;s not going to be a million peaceful marchers in D.C.&#8221; Then, on January 6, the media personality took to a megaphone before leading a crowd to the Capitol.
&#8220;The Democrats are posing as communists, but we know what they really are,&#8221; Shroyer said on a bullhorn, according to court filings. &#8220;They&#8217;re just tyrants, they&#8217;re tyrants. And so today, on January 6, we declare death to tyranny! Death to tyrants!&#8221;
According to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/owen-shroyer-infowars-capitol-riot-sentencing-11cb087e9716061591fd46b6861c4c1c" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Associated Press</a>, Shroyer pleaded guilty in June to illegally entering a restricted area, a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum sentence of one year behind bars.
During Tuesday&#8217;s sentencing hearing, NBC <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/infowars-host-owen-shroyer-sentenced-jan-6-case-rcna104378" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that Shroyer told the court, &#8220;I was not a part of any larger plan for illegal activity or violence that day.&#8221;
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&#8220;It was to get the attention and draw the crowds away,&#8221; he said, according to The Associated Press.
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, who just last week handed down a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/enrique-tarrio-sentenced-to-decades-behind-bars-the-longest-j6-sentence-to-date" target="_blank" rel="noopener">22-year sentence</a> in federal prison to Proud Boys founder Enrique Tarrio for his role in the Capitol breach, told the InfoWars host that he &#8220;amped up&#8221; the crowd on the Capitol steps.
&#8220;Context is everything,&#8221; the judge said. &#8220;I do not believe that you were trying to distract the crowd or turn the crowd away from the Capitol.&#8221;
Prosecutors asked the court to sentence Shroyer to 120 days in prison, including 12 months of supervised release, 60 hours of community service, and $500 in restitution.
&#8220;Such a sentence protects the community, promotes respect for the law, and deters future crime by imposing restrictions on his liberty as a consequence of his behavior, while recognizing his acceptance of responsibility for his crime,&#8221; the prosecution wrote.
Shroyer&#8217;s defense team requested in <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.234903/gov.uscourts.dcd.234903.46.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">court filings</a> on Sunday that the judge spare him incarceration, saying the case had been &#8220;characterized by a cooperative spirit between the defense and the Government,&#8221; adding their client complied with federal inspectors to search his cell phone without a warrant.
&#8220;But when Mr. Shroyer appeared at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, he wore two hats: one was that of outraged citizen who believed that an election had been rigged, the other as full-time journalist and commentator who sought a front-row seat at an historic event,&#8221; the defense wrote.
Defense attorney Norm Pattis for Shroyer said he planned to appeal the sentence and has repeatedly accused prosecutors of infringing on his client&#8217;s First Amendment rights.
&#8220;Mr. Shroyer, and every person capable of speaking in the United States, has a right to utter the speech Mr. Shroyer used. That the Government would suggest otherwise is a frightening commentary on our times,&#8221; Pattis wrote in a court filing on Sunday.
But prosecutors argue the charges against Shroyer do not infringe on his free speech rights.
&#8220;Shroyer cannot light a fire near a can of gasoline, and then express concern or disbelief when it explodes,&#8221; they wrote.
A date was not immediately set for Shroyer to report to prison.
The Associated Press reported that Shroyer joins more than 1,100 people charged with Capitol breach-related federal crimes, of which over 650 have pleaded guilty, more than 600 were sentenced, and half received terms ranging from three days to 22 years.

Gun Rights Advocates From Across U.S. Rally In Virginia’s Capital Against Gun Control Legislation

InfoWars Host Owen Shroyer Gets 60 Days In Prison In J6-Related Case

Alex Jones

Infowars

Former <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/proud-boys" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Proud Boys</a> chairman Enrique Tarrio was sentenced Tuesday to 22 years behind bars in connection to the breach at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. 
The sentence marks the longest to date in the Department of Justice&#8217;s handling of J6.
Tarrio, the son of Cuban immigrants, was found guilty of seditious conspiracy by a federal jury in Washington, D.C., back in May, and then sentenced by Judge Timothy Kelly. The former Proud Boy was facing 33 years behind bars.
&#8220;I am not a political zealot. Inflicting harm or changing the results of the election was not my goal,&#8221; Tarrio <a href="https://apnews.com/article/enrique-tarrio-capitol-riot-seditious-conspiracy-sentencing-da60222b3e1e54902db2bbbb219dc3fb" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> before sentencing. &#8220;Please show me mercy. I ask that you not take my 40s away from me.&#8221;
Tarrio was notably not in D.C. on the day of the Capitol breach. Prosecutors, instead, argued that Tarrio was a leader and not a foot soldier, calling him &#8220;intelligent, charming, creative, and articulate” and claiming that he used those talents to “inflame and radicalize an untold number of followers.&#8221;
The government relied heavily on private communication from J6 defendants, sorting through hundreds of thousands of messages to try to make the case that Tarrio and others were guilty of this rare seditious conspiracy charge.
The seditious conspiracy law was enacted after the Civil War to arrest Southerners who might keep fighting the U.S. government, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/proud-boys-seditious-conspiracy-explained-207f7ca08d7c30d3cb28127eb9992bca" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Associated Press. It’s extremely rare in its application and hard to prove, though it’s been used by the DOJ about a dozen times in connection to the Capitol breach, rather successfully.
In one message used by the prosecution, Tarrio <a href="https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/sedition-trial-for-miami-ex-proud-boys-leader-4-others-begins-2-years-after-jan-6-riot/2948854/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>, “Make no mistake … we did this.” The government also highlighted a document outlining a Capitol takeover that was sent to Tarrio on social media platform Telegram called “<a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2023/04/26/proud-boys-leader-verdict-jan-6-00093891">1776 Returns</a>.” Tarrio did not directly respond to the sent document and claims he never even saw it, let alone opened it. 
Defense lawyers maintained throughout the trial that there was not a single shred of written evidence to show that Tarrio conspired to stop the certification of the 2020 election.
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While the trial was ongoing, Tarrio said from inside a jail cell that the government was impeding on free speech rights. 
“What they’re trying to do, what people are trying to do &#8212; and this is in general, I’m speaking in general &#8212; is manipulate how we talk to each other in the locker room,&#8221; Tarrio <a href="https://twitter.com/gatewaypundit/status/1651006027209342977" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a Twitter spaces event hosted on April 25. &#8220;And it’s not fair. &#8230; It’s just not right. It’s not the justice system that you grew up in civics class learning about.”
Two other Proud Boy members, Joe Biggs and Ethan Nordean, have also been convicted of seditious conspiracy. Judge Kelly sentenced Biggs to 17 years years behind bars and Nordean was hit with 18 years. Another Proud Boy, Zachary Rehl, was also convicted of seditious conspiracy, was given a 15-year prison sentence by Judge Kelly. Moreover, two Oath Keepers who have been convicted of seditious conspiracy; Stewart Rhodes has been sentenced to 18 years, and Kelly Meggs to 12 years.
Overall, more than 1,100 people have been charged in connection to the Capitol breach, and hundreds have already been sentenced to prison time.

Enrique Tarrio

Enrique Tarrio Sentenced To Decades Behind Bars, The Longest J6 Sentence To Date

Proud Boys

House Republicans announced on Friday that members of the media and other qualified individuals will have access to view security footage from the U.S. Capitol breach on January 6, 2021.
“House Republicans are continuing to deliver on our promise to bring transparency and accountability to the People’s House by increasing access to security footage of the U.S. Capitol from January 5th and 6th, 2021,” Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/congress-to-grant-limited-access-to-jan-6-security-footage-house-gop-says/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> said in a statement.
GOP lawmakers first <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/marjorie-taylor-greene-announces-new-round-of-journalists-receive-unfettered-access-to-j6-tapes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> earlier this year they would begin to slowly roll out to individual news agencies more than 40,000 hours of security footage from the Capitol breach to networks to counter the “politicization” fostered by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and the January 6th Committee.
The Committee on House Administration published a set of guidelines that would allow members of the U.S. media, government-focused nonprofit organizations, and attorneys for defendants facing charges related to the January 6 to submit requests to view the footage.
“This announcement stands in stark contrast to the previous Democrat leadership, who blocked access to the footage and only showed carefully edited clips to the public,” Loudermilk, who chairs the administration committee’s oversight subpanel, added.
According to program rules, those seeking access to the security tapes would need to set an appointment that limits them to watch the footage for three hours at a time, once a week. Spectators are prohibited from recording the tapes from secured terminals inside the Capitol building and may only be given portions of the footage at the committee’s discretion.
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Here’s the instructions on how to see January 6th Capitol video footage and who is allowed access. <a href="https://t.co/7N3Rm4SU0F">pic.twitter.com/7N3Rm4SU0F</a>
&mdash; Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepMTG/status/1698392595171357087?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 3, 2023</a></blockquote>
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For more than two years, U.S. citizens have called on lawmakers to release the footage to the public, expressing concerns over how media outlets curate the timeline of events.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) announced in May that three news media outlets received footage from the Capitol breach to bring the American people more transparency about what happened that day.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) released “unfettered access” of the Capitol security footage to investigative journalist and Just the News founder John Solomon, senior writer for American Greatness Julie Kelly, and an unidentified third news outlet.
McCarthy first gave the exclusive surveillance footage to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who reported on several tapes showing two Capitol police officers escorting Jacob Chansley, known as the “QAnon Shaman,” throughout the building.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called from the Senate floor for Fox News founder Rupert Murdoch to pull Carlson off the air, and reporters from several sites hounded McCarthy for giving Carlson’s team access to the video.
Schumer accused McCarthy in a February letter to his colleagues of potentially causing another “attack” on the Capitol by releasing the security footage from January 6, <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/3870181-schumer-blasts-mccarthy-for-giving-jan-6-footage-to-fox-news/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to The Hill.
“The speaker is needlessly exposing the Capitol complex to one of the worst security risks since 9/11,” Schumer said in a letter to Senate Democrats. “The footage Speaker McCarthy is making available to Fox News is a treasure trove of closely held information about how the Capitol complex is protected and its public release would compromise the safety of the Legislative Branch and allow those who want to commit another attack to learn how Congress is safeguarded.”

House Republicans Unveil Instructions To Access January 6 Capitol Footage

House Republicans Announce Media, Defendants Charged In January 6-Related Crimes Can Access Capitol Riot Footage

Chuck Schumer

House Republicans

January 6 Committee

Kevin McCarthy

Two members of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/proud-boys" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Proud Boys</a> were sentenced to over 15 years in prison on Thursday on charges in connection with the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.
Joseph Biggs, a former group leader, received 17 years in federal prison — among the longest sentences handed down — after a Washington, D.C., jury convicted him of seditious conspiracy for attempting to forcibly prevent the peaceful transfer of presidential power and other charges.
&#8220;Our Constitution and laws give you so many important rights that Americans have fought and died for and that you yourself put on a uniform to defend,&#8221; District Judge Timothy Kelly <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/31/politics/proud-boys-biggs-sentencing" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> said. &#8220;People around the world would give anything for these rights,&#8221; adding that the events on January 6 &#8220;broke our tradition of the peaceful transferring of power&#8221; in the United States.
&#8220;The nature of the constitutional moment we were in that day is something that is so sensitive that it deserves a significant sentence,&#8221; he said.
Biggs, a 38-year-old U.S. Army veteran of Ormond Beach, Florida, was convicted in May of seditious conspiracy; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of an official proceeding; conspiracy to use force, intimidation or threats to prevent officers of the U.S. from discharging their duties; interference with law enforcement during civil disorder; and destruction of government property.
During his sentencing hearing, he <a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-riot-proud-boys-sentencing-seditious-conspiracy-5c8bf8a8e5dc6381e7387e31e554cee6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> admitted that he &#8220;messed up&#8221; on January 6 while claiming he was &#8220;seduced by the crowd&#8221; to move forward at the nation&#8217;s Capitol.
&#8220;I know that I messed up that day, but I am not a terrorist,&#8221; he <a href="https://www.reuters.com/legal/former-proud-boys-leaders-could-face-longest-sentences-yet-us-capitol-attack-2023-08-31/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
&#8220;I wanted to see what would happen,&#8221; he said. &#8220;My curiosity got the better of me, and I&#8217;ll have to live with that for the rest of my life.&#8221;
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&#8220;I&#8217;m not a terrorist,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I don&#8217;t have hate in my heart.&#8221;
Another former leader of the Proud Boys was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Thursday.
Zachary Rehl received his sentencing after a federal jury <a href="https://themessenger.com/politics/proud-boy-zachary-rehl-sprayed-police-prison-seditious-conspiracy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reportedly</a> found him guilty of obstructing an official proceeding, conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiring to use force to prevent federal officers from discharging their duties, interfering with law enforcement officers during a civil disorder, and destruction of federal property.
Rehl, a 38-year-old Marine from Philadelphia, reportedly committed perjury during the trial when he lied about assaulting police with a chemical spray. But video footage showed him spraying a chemical irritant at Capitol police officers.
During his hearing, he said he believed the politicians who &#8220;started spreading lies about the election,&#8221; adding that he &#8220;fell for it, hook, line and sinker.&#8221;
Rehl and Briggs went to trial alongside other Proud Boy members, including Enrique Tarrio, Ethan Nordean, and Dominic Pezzola. All but Pezzola were convicted of seditious conspiracy. Pezzola and Nordean will receive sentencing on Friday, and Tarrio on Tuesday.
According to The Associated Press, prosecutors have charged 1,129 people with Capitol riot-related federal crimes. Of those, at least 630 have pleaded guilty, and 110 have been convicted at trial.

Two Proud Boys Sentenced More Than 15 Years In Prison In J6 Case: Reports

Courts

If it wasn&#8217;t evident that Lady Justice might possibly be peeking through her blindfold in the federal case of former President Donald J. Trump and his alleged crimes surrounding the events of January 6, 2021, this latest story certainly could remove all doubts. During Trump&#8217;s arraignment hearing on Monday, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan compared January 6 with 9/11 and the Boston Marathon bombing.
This week, Chutkan, an Obama appointee, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/federal-judge-sets-date-for-trumps-election-interference-trial-one-day-before-super-tuesday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">set the trial date for March 4, 2024</a> — which so happens to be one day before Super Tuesday. Special Counsel Jack Smith&#8217;s team had requested January 2024, while Trump&#8217;s attorneys argued for a date in April 2026. After hearing both sides, Chutkan decided to call it even &#8230; and place the opening trial date two months after Smith&#8217;s team&#8217;s suggested date and essentially smack dab in the middle of the GOP primary season. (Not exactly even, if you didn&#8217;t catch that.)
How did Chutkan justify her decision? Well, the intrepid journalist and podcaster Julie Kelly broke that down for us via X — formerly known as Twitter.
&#8220;And there you have it, folks,&#8221; Kelly said. &#8220;Obama-appointed Tanya Chutkan just compared January 6 to Boston Marathon bombing and 9/11. Insulting to the victims and legally illiterate. She isn&#8217;t just crooked but painfully stupid.&#8221;
Chutkan said in court, &#8220;The trial will start three years, one month and 27 days after the events of Jan. 6, 2021. The trial involving the Boston Marathon bombing began less than two years after the events. The trial involving Zacarias Moussaoui for his role in the September 11 attacks was set to begin one year after the attacks; but due to continuances, appeals, and voluminous discovery, it began roughly four years later.&#8221;
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And there you have it, folks.
Obama-appointed Tanya Chutkan just compared January 6 to Boston Marathon bombing and 9/11.
Insulting to the victims and legally illiterate. She isn&#39;t just crooked but painfully stupid. <a href="https://t.co/IyiZ0tHrwD">pic.twitter.com/IyiZ0tHrwD</a>
&mdash; Julie Kelly 🇺🇸 (@julie_kelly2) <a href="https://twitter.com/julie_kelly2/status/1696350705357824172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 29, 2023</a></blockquote>
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It&#8217;s a preposterous comparison and effectively puts Trump and January 6 on par with Islamic terrorism. Yet, for many Leftists, Trump is no better than an Islamic terrorist.
Chutkan has displayed apparent bias against the GOP frontrunner before. In October 2022, she took issue with the fact that he still had his freedom intact.
&#8220;I see the footage of the flags and the signs that people were carrying and the hats they were wearing and the garb, and the people who mobbed that Capitol were there in fealty, in loyalty, to one man — not to the Constitution &#8230; It&#8217;s a blind loyalty to one person who, by the way, remains free to this day,&#8221; Chutkan <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/justice/donald-trump-indictment-judge-chutkan-trump-free-jan-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> to a January 6 defendant in October 2022. (emphasis added)
For somebody who&#8217;s supposed to care about maintaining neutrality on the bench, Chutkan certainly has given Trump plenty of fodder.
After the Monday hearing, Trump issued a statement, in part saying, &#8220;Today a biased, Trump Hating Judge gave me only a two month extension, just what our corrupt government wanted, SUPER TUESDAY. I will APPEAL!&#8221;
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Adding <a href="https://wcti12.com/news/nation-world/former-president-donald-trumps-trial-calendar-running-into-political-calendar-as-he-tries-to-get-back-to-white-house-presidential-election-super-tuesday-hush-money-manhattan-georgia-election-rico-classified-documents-2020-january-6-special-prosecutor#:~:text=%E2%80%9CToday%20a%20biased%2C%20Trump%20Hating,are%20also%20subject%20to%20change." target="_blank" rel="noopener">insult to injury</a> for the former president, his legal team now has to dig through 12 million pages of evidence to prepare his defense, according to attorney Mike Davis. Chutkan seemed mystified that his team said it couldn&#8217;t handle that amount of discovery in the timeframe given.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The Biden Justice Department waited 30 months to bring their unprecedented indictments of their boss&#39;s chief political enemy.
Now Obama Judge Tanya Chutkan refuses to give Trump enough time for his attorneys to read 12 million pages and prepare his defense.
Instead, she… <a href="https://t.co/UbQb1fyoaa">https://t.co/UbQb1fyoaa</a>
&mdash; 🇺🇸 Mike Davis 🇺🇸 (@mrddmia) <a href="https://twitter.com/mrddmia/status/1696204784926413090?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 28, 2023</a></blockquote>
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It should be noted Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro described the January 6 indictment against Trump as &#8220;bullsh**.&#8221; Since then, it seems the crap — for lack of a better term — has continued in Chutkan&#8217;s courtroom.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Tanya Chutkan, Donald J. Trump

Obama Judge Compares Trump January 6 Case With Boston Marathon Bombing, 9/11 Trials

Politics

Efforts to remove former President Donald Trump from state ballots in the 2024 election are ramping up nationwide after critics argued the leading Republican contender is constitutionally disqualified from serving as president after he &#8220;engaged in insurrection&#8221; against the United States.
Trump, who is leading the GOP primaries by a landslide, faces four separate indictments along the East Coast, including charges related to hush money, classified documents, election interference, and racketeering. Trump has broadly denied any wrongdoing in the charges brought against him and has claimed politically motivated forces are targeting him in a &#8220;witch hunt&#8221; propagated by the Biden administration and Democrat prosecutors.
But now opponents across the political spectrum of the former president are arguing that under the U.S. Constitution&#8217;s 14th Amendment, Trump is barred from holding office ever again after the January 6 Capitol attack.
Lawrence Caplan, a Florida tax attorney, became the first to challenge Trump&#8217;s candidacy for president in federal court last week, pointing to the Amendment&#8217;s &#8220;disqualification clause&#8221; that says those who &#8220;have engaged in insurrection or rebellion&#8221; against the government cannot hold office.
He <a href="https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4171623-florida-lawyer-files-challenge-to-disqualify-trump-from-2024-race-citing-14th-amendment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Hill that the former president&#8217;s grand jury indictments in the Washington, D.C., election interference federal case and the Georgia case stemming from alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election make his disqualification automatic, despite neither indictment accusing Trump of inciting the mob that attacked the Capitol.
&#8220;The bottom line here is that President Trump both engaged in an insurrection and also gave aid and comfort to other individuals who were engaging in such actions, within the clear meaning of those terms as defined in Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment,&#8221; Caplan wrote in a <a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67724934/1/caplan-v-trump/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">filing</a> last week, challenging Trump&#8217;s eligibility to run for office again. &#8220;Assuming that the public record to date is accurate, and we have no evidence to the contrary, Trump is no longer eligible to seek the office of the President of the United States, or of any other state of the Union.&#8221;
The Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1868 in the aftermath of the Civil War during the Reconstruction Era and was designed to represent a new birth of freedom for previously disenfranchised citizens, according to <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/fourteenth_amendment_0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cornell University&#8217;s Legal Information Institute.</a> The Amendment&#8217;s &#8220;disqualification clause&#8221; was written to bar those who had joined the Confederacy from serving in state or federal office, but would &#8220;theoretically still apply&#8221; to those who engage in future rebellions or insurrections against the U.S.
Two legal professors and members of the conservative Federalist Society, William Baude and Michael Stokes Paulsen, endorsed the &#8220;self-executing&#8221; idea in the <a href="https://deliverypdf.ssrn.com/delivery.php?ID=351084105114074089068001113120119074037024090008032052023106011111104104092003067011059012033058039112110017080119106087084110103046069078020025010108082105098027007006042074017095015085115074083111095085028120001070124099112070021103069025007005017&amp;EXT=pdf&amp;INDEX=TRUE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pennsylvania Law Review</a>, writing the clause &#8220;is alive and in force&#8221; and that if any government official &#8220;planned, supported, assisted, encouraged, endorsed, or aided in a material way those who engaged in the insurrection of January 6, or otherwise knowingly and willfully participated in a broader rebellion against the constitutional system, such persons are constitutionally disqualified from office.&#8221;
&#8220;In such situations, Section Three&#8217;s constitutional disqualifications can, should, and must be carried out,&#8221; Bode and Paulsen wrote.
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said during the GOP presidential debate in Milwaukee last week that he would &#8220;not going to support somebody who&#8217;s been convicted of a serious felony or who is disqualified under our Constitution.&#8221;
Former conservative 4th Circuit Appeals Court Judge J. Michael Luttig and liberal Harvard legal scholar Laurence Tribe published an article last week in <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/08/donald-trump-constitutionally-prohibited-presidency/675048/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Atlantic</a> claiming Trump&#8217;s effort to allegedly remain in power after the 2020 election &#8220;place him squarely within the ambit of the disqualification clause.&#8221;
Two civil rights organizations — Mi Familia Vota and Free Speech for People — also launched campaigns in July to pressure state officials in Nevada, California, Oregon, Colorado, and Georgia to disqualify Trump from appearing on ballots in those states in 2024, according to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4086124-activists-want-to-disqualify-trump-from-ballot-in-key-states-under-14th-amendment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Hill</a>.
And Bryant &#8220;Corky&#8221; Messner, a former New Hampshire U.S. Senate candidate in 2020 previously endorsed by Trump, announced plans to materialize the former president&#8217;s disqualification at the state level, ABC <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/04/18/trump-ballots-january-6/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
But despite the opposition from lawmakers, activists, and never-Trumpers, others warn against using the clause against the former president.
Harvard Law School Professor Emeritus Alan Dershowitz said the notion puts the Constitution in &#8220;grave danger.&#8221;
&#8220;It would put the decision about who the President is in the hands of local Secretaries of State and Democratic governors, instead of in the hands of the people,&#8221; Dershowitz <a href="https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/all-things-trump/florida-lawyer-says-trump-cant-run-office-under-14th-amendment?utm_source=mux&amp;utm_medium=social" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Just the News.
Constitutional law attorney and former Trump ally Jenna Ellis said in an <a href="https://twitter.com/JennaEllisEsq/status/1693987685558530491" target="_blank" rel="noopener">X-post</a>, &#8220;The Left is purposefully calling J6 an &#8216;insurrection&#8217; to justify a baseless 14th Amendment challenge.&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s like baselessly calling election challenges on behalf of a campaign &#8220;racketeering&#8221; to justify a RICO charge,&#8221; Ellis, who is also named a co-conspirator in Trump&#8217;s Georgia indictment, said.
And Fox News host Mark Levin slammed Judge Tribe and Harvard legal scholar Luttig for writing &#8220;a self-humiliating piece&#8221; in the leftwing Atlantic Monthly claiming the constitutional clause stops Trump from being elected president.
&#8220;This has to be one of the truly dumbest essays ever written on the subject,&#8221; Levin said in an <a href="https://twitter.com/marklevinshow/status/1693742724879384584" target="_blank" rel="noopener">X-post</a>. &#8220;And it is something the Marxist left has been pushing for years against Trump. Trump aside, they are burning down one institution after another self-righteously claiming that they are standing up to tyranny and for the republic. I will address this on the air tonight.&#8221;
In April, Trump&#8217;s campaign team anticipated a wave of legal challenges thrown at the former president
&#8220;What these undemocratic organizations are doing is blatant election interference and tampering,&#8221; Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said in a <a class="zZyg UbGl iFzk qdXb WCDh DbOX tqUt " href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/04/18/trump-ballots-january-6/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-testid="prism-linkbase">statement to the Washington Post</a>. &#8220;They are not even trying to hide it anymore and it is sad they want to deprive the American people of choosing Donald Trump — the overwhelming front-runner by far — as their President.&#8221;
&#8220;History will not judge them kindly,&#8221; Cheung added.

Former President Donald Trump Speaks At Trump National Golf Club Bedminster

Efforts To Remove Trump From 2024 Ballot Using 14th Amendment Ramp Up: Report

Bipartisan Efforts To Remove Trump From 2024 Ballot Under 14th Amendment Ramp Up: Report

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