Right Wing Extremism
Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About 'Sedition' Except We Forgot Eugene Debs
Anyway, 'what is it,' 'it is this,' 'thank you,' 'you're welcome.'
January 16, 2021 12:30 PM
Earlier this week, all eight members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff used serious language in rebuking the Capitol attack, writing that "[t]he rights of freedom of speech and assembly do not give anyone the rights to resort to violence, sedition and insurrection."
When federal law enforcement finally held a damn briefing this week on the Trump riots, acting DC US Attorney Mike Sherwin announced he had created a "strike force" to look into the most serious cases, saying "We're looking at significant felony cases tied to sedition and conspiracy."
And Thursday, in "QAnon Shaman" (weird fur guy) Jacob Chansley's case, federal prosecutors described the MAGA riots of 1/6 as a "violent insurrection that attempted to overthrow the United States Government." They also called Chansley "an active participant in" and "the most prominent symbol of" the insurrection.
In addition to having colloquial definitions, words like "insurrection" and "sedition" also have legal meanings. Sedition and insurrection aren't just descriptive words; they're also specific federal crimes.
Would you like to know more?
<h2>Let's talk sedition<br></h2><p>Not THAT way, silly. Let's figure out what crimes these assholes can be charged with!<br></p>Seditious conspiracy, found at <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2384" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">18 U.S. Code § 2384</a>, is defined as any time <blockquote>"two or more persons ... conspire to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to levy war against them, or to oppose by force the authority thereof, or by force to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law of the United States, or by force to seize, take, or possess any property of the United States contrary to the authority thereof[.]"</blockquote><p>Yeah, I would say that applies to "people who stormed the Capitol intent on stopping Congress from doing its job by force." And it's not just us over here at Wonkette; there are experts who <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/01/13/956285582/federal-strike-force-builds-sedition-cases-against-capitol-rioters-will-it-work" target="_blank">agree</a>.</p><blockquote>"Anybody who broke in [to the Capitol] with the intent to stop the vote, that's sedition. That is textbook sedition," says law professor Michael McDaniel, a retired Army brigadier general who also held high-level federal and state homeland security posts. "I think there has to be successful criminal prosecutions of these individuals that were involved in seditious conspiracy."<br><br>McDaniel, who now directs the Homeland and National Security Law Program at Western Michigan University, says if sedition is not among those charges, it risks further normalizing the kind of political violence we've seen in the Trump era, from Charlottesville, Va., to the U.S. Capitol.</blockquote><p>Sedition and seditious conspiracy come with a prison term of up to 20 years.<br></p><p>In recent history, the feds have been successful at convicting <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/02/18/515985157/omar-abdel-rahman-radical-cleric-connected-to-1993-world-trade-center-bombing-di" target="_blank">Muslims</a> of sedition, while <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/28/us/hutaree-militia-members-acquitted-of-sedition.html" target="_blank">struggling</a> to obtain convictions or even maintain charges against white rightwing white supremacists. Shocking, I know.<br></p><p>But it's possible that even white juries would be willing to consider sedition charges right now, with so many Americans reeling from what they watched unfold on TV last week. <br></p><p>And while sedition is a more serious crime, rebellion or insurrection are also federal felony charges that could come into play. In Thursday's filing in Q Bo Peep's case, in addition to mentioning sedition, the government described the Trumpy terrorism effort as an ongoing "insurrection movement."<br></p><p>Rebellion or insurrection, <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2383" target="_blank">18 U.S. Code § 2383</a>, applies when a person "incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof" or "gives aid or comfort" to an insurrectionist. Insurrection and rebellion are punishable by up to 10 years in prison.</p><p>Naturally, federal law enforcement is very interested in finding the leaders of the coup attempt. At the same press conference where he first used the words <em>insurrection</em> and <em>sedition</em>, US Attorney <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/01/13/956285582/federal-strike-force-builds-sedition-cases-against-capitol-rioters-will-it-work" target="_blank">Sherwin</a> also talked about what looked to him like a planned attack with some sort of command structure.<br></p><blockquote>"They look paramilitary almost, right? You've got the uniform, you've got communication, you have all the paraphernalia," he says. "Those show indications of affiliation and a command and control. So I believe we are going to find those hallmarks. I can't say when. It could be weeks, if not months."</blockquote><h2>Lock them up! Lock them up!<br></h2><p>Even with Donald fucking Trump still technically at the head of the executive branch, we are already seeing massive federal investigations into this fuckery.<br></p>But the people who physically participated in storming the Capitol aren't the only ones who should be worried about potential legal liability. One of the hot topics on everyone's minds is whether Donald Trump or members of Congress could or will be charged with inciting this whole mess.It's far from certain that Donald Trump will face criminal charges after he leaves office ... but it's not entirely out of the realm of possibility, either. And the same goes for other elected officials and public figures who actively cheered this shit on. In the same way that horned wolf-man may be guilty of participating in an insurrection or seditious conspiracy, Trump and his cronies very well might be guilty of inciting one.<p>For good reason, incitement is a high legal bar to cross. But it's also not impossible. The <a href="https://mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/970/incitement-to-imminent-lawless-action" target="_blank">standard</a> of guilt for inciting violence based on speech is: What they said has to be both meant to and likely to get other people to break the law. <br></p><p>Before people took the Capitol and set off to murder the government, Trump <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55640437" target="_blank">told</a> a crowd they would "never give up" and "never concede," even saying that if Biden was sworn in, "You will have an illegitimate president. That is what you will have, and we can't let that happen."</p><p> While a dangerous mob was trashing the Capitol — and in the midst of killing five people — Trump called the terrorists patriots and said he loved them. </p><p>Because of his actions last Wednesday, Donald Trump was deemed to be too dangerous for websites from Instagram to Shopify. It is not outrageous to suggest he should also face legal liability for what he did.</p><p>Like pretty much everything at this point, we're going to have to wait and see to find out who gets charged with what and whether Trump just tries to pardon every white supremacist in the country. But thanks again to the traitors for uploading so much photo and video evidence of all their crimes! That was really helpful.<br></p><p>[<a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/01/13/956285582/federal-strike-force-builds-sedition-cases-against-capitol-rioters-will-it-work" target="_blank">NPR</a> / <a href="https://www.vox.com/22227681/joint-chiefs-letter-capitol-trump" target="_blank">Vox</a> / <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/07/arts/what-are-sedition-charges.html" target="_blank">NYT</a> / <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2383" target="_blank">18 U.S. Code § 2383</a> / <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2384" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">18 U.S. Code § 2384</a> / <a href="https://mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/970/incitement-to-imminent-lawless-action" target="_blank">MTSU</a> / <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55640437" target="_blank">BBC</a>]</p><p><em>Follow Jamie on <a href="https://twitter.com/jamielynncrofts" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, DO IT NOW!</em><br></p><p></p><p><a href="https://amzn.to/33mKzZe" target="_blank">Do your Amazon shopping through this link, because reasons</a>.</p><p></p><p></p><form name="donation" method="post" class="donation-form"><p class="subheadline">How often would you like to donate?</p><div class="form-row row--plan"><label class="plan-type__label"><input type="radio" name="plan_type" value="once" class="plan-type" required="" checked> Just once
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2020 presidential election
Pennsylvania Vote-Frauder Guy Extra Super-Duper Stupid
His lawyer's a real piece of work, too.
January 15, 2021 01:48 PM
A week after the election, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick offered a reward of One Million Dollars to anyone who could provide evidence of vote fraud. As you may recall, Pennsylvania Lt. Gov John Fetterman immediately stepped right up to say he'd like to solve the puzzle Pat collect the reward, since he had a case of a guy who tried to vote twice.
Patrick still hasn't shelled out a cent, or even a suite of Whirlpool appliances, to pay Fetterman, but the alleged vote frauder, Ralph Thurman, had a preliminary hearing in state court this week, at which his attorney insisted that if there was any fraud anywhere, it was the entire case against their client, an innocent lamb of a fellow who they said was tricked in a devious plot by Democrats into voting twice. And besides, Thurman's attorney also said, Thurman's son had given permission to vote on his behalf, which made it okay.
Remember that one the next time you're pulled over for speeding. "But officer, Doktor Zoom at Wonkette gave me permission to exceed the posted speed limit!" (Also, I most certainly did not, you liar.)
<p>The hearing, overseen by District Judge Thomas Tartaglio, who will at least have a great story to tell other judges at judge parties, didn't go so great for Thurman. Tartaglio ordered Thurman be tried in Common Pleas Court on felony charges of repeat voting, plus a smattering of misdemeanor charges: <span style="background-color: initial;">forgery, identity theft, and false swearing to a public official. Tartaglio did at least throw out one charge for "forging and destroying ballots," so that was nice. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">But Thurman's attorney sure tried to cast doubt on whether a crime took place at all. He claimed, without bothering to provide any evidence, that a poll worker, Eric Frank, was part of a tricksy plot to ensnare Thurman, a Republican, because Eric Frank's father, David Frank, was the precinct judge of elections, and what's more, Eric Frank's mom, Lani Frank, is a <em>Democrat</em>. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">Just to make things sillier, attorney Joseph Vaughan claimed that Eric Frank was trying to collect a "bounty" for reporting voter fraud, not that any such reward existed before the Texas lieutenant governor came out with his. "We believe that Mr. Thurman was set up," Vaughan said while questioning Frank. But without any proof to back up the claims, Tartaglio ruled in favor of the prosecutors' objections to the defense questions. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">For his part, Frank said he was just doing his job as a poll worker, handing ballots to voters after another worker signed them in and announced their names. He'd never seen Thurman before Election Day, for that matter. </span></p><blockquote><span style="background-color: initial;">"I know nothing about a bounty or a reward or anything," he said. "I haven't reached out for any kind of compensation. What they are drumming up is completely false."</span></blockquote><p><span style="background-color: initial;">The facts are fairly straightforward, or so the Chester County <em>Daily Local News</em> <a href="https://www.dailylocal.com/news/chester-county-man-facing-trial-for-voter-fraud-says-he-was-tricked-into-voting-twice/article_7f9ca36a-55d9-11eb-9cdd-5b0928b12ee4.html" target="_blank">would have us believe</a>. Mr. Thurman, 71, came to vote around 7:20 a.m., and Eric Frank said he overheard Thurman ask the other poll worker whether he needed ID to vote. Not in Pennsylvania, as long as it's not his first time voting. Then Thurman wondered aloud if it would be OK to vote for his son, asking Frank, "So I can come back and sign in again?" </span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">Frank told him, no, sir, "That would be illegal," and Thurman replied "How would you know?"</span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">Thurman left, but returned about three hours later. Frank said that when he heard the name "Thurman" called again, he looked up and saw Thurman was back, but — and this is why you should support local journalism, kids — "this time wearing sunglasses."</span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">Frank handed him a ballot anyway (he explained under questioning that it wasn't his job to judge whether voters were entitled to vote) and went to alert his dad, but by the time David Frank was available, Thurman was just putting his second ballot in the scanner and heading out the door.</span></p><blockquote><span style="background-color: initial;"></span>"I said, 'Sir, can you please come back in here, so we can straighten this out?'" David Frank said. "He said, 'I don't know. I can't do that. I have to go. My wife is in the car.'" <br><br>A third poll worker, Nancy Harkins of West Chester, said she was substituting for the poll book worker when Thurman arrived the second time. She said she distinctly heard him identify himself as Kyle Thurman and signed the poll book under that name. </blockquote><p>Vaughan tried to poke holes in the narrative, kind of, asking Harkins if Thurman had said anything to her about voting for his son (he hadn't) and asking Frank if he knew Thurman was hard of hearing and may not have heard Frank say voting twice is illegal. (Which would make his reply, "how would you know?" a remarkable bit of psychic magic.) </p><p>The very best part of the story is the question Vaughan asked David Frank, though: </p><blockquote>he asked whether the elections official was aware that when Thurman voted for his son, he cast a ballot for Biden, not Trump. "If the votes cancel each other out, isn't it true that you're not technically voting twice?" He asked. [Assistant District Attorney Daniel ] Hollander, however, objected, calling the notion "absolutely preposterous." Tartaglio agreed. </blockquote><p>Another member of the prosecution team, West Chester County attorney Sam Stretton, pointed out, just in case anyone were unclear on the matter, that even if Thurman's son had given "permission," that didn't make voting twice legal: "It is totally illegal. You vote for yourself. There is no such thing as proxy voting. If we did that, it would create absolute chaos."</p><p>Yeah, but he had <em>permission</em>, man. And the two votes cancelled each other. Where's the harm? </p><p>Vaughan closed with a stirring defense of his client's character, and then, summoning his internal Al Pacino, declared the whole court was out of order: </p><blockquote>"It is implausible to think that he would knowingly commit a crime," Vaughan said. "<strong>The crime here is to bring charges." </strong>Repeating his claims of a "set up" by others' gains of his client, he said the case was "insidious at its worst, and a mistake at best." [Emphasis added —Dok] </blockquote><p>Fetterman said Thursday that the case actually demonstrates how difficult massive voter fraud would be. Like, even if you don't telegraph your intentions by asking poll workers questions about how you might vote twice. </p><blockquote>"This case demonstrates how rare and impossibly difficult it is to successfully commit voter fraud," Fetterman said in a telephone interview. "The fact that Mr. Thurman also happened to vote for the president also underscores that key point."</blockquote><p>Fetterman said that even though the double-voting felony could send Thurman to jail for between three and a half and seven years, he doesn't think the old idiot should go to prison. Fetterman would rather see him agree to record a public service ad in which he'd talk about how "dangerous and foolish it is to commit voter fraud." Dang, these liberal officials! </p><p>In conclusion, if you want to do voter fraud, don't, because you'll probably be caught and charged with a felony, and then everyone will make fun of you, too. </p><p>[<a href="https://www.dailylocal.com/news/chester-county-man-facing-trial-for-voter-fraud-says-he-was-tricked-into-voting-twice/article_7f9ca36a-55d9-11eb-9cdd-5b0928b12ee4.html" target="_blank">Daily Local News</a>]</p><p>Yr Wonkette is funded entirely</p><p>That's it, Dok forgot to add anything to the rest of the sentence.</p><p></p><form name="donation" method="post" class="donation-form"><p class="subheadline">How often would you like to donate?</p><div class="form-row row--plan"><label class="plan-type__label"><input type="radio" name="plan_type" value="once" class="plan-type" required="" checked> Just once
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Crime
Whom Are We Arresting For Capitol Rioting Today?
Such promising young people, too.
January 14, 2021 12:30 PM
Super-smart people who took photos and video of themselves participating in last week's armed insurrection keep getting arrested for some reason, as law enforcement, often with the help of people on social media, continues identifying them. While it might have made a hell of a lot more sense to arrest people during the riots, at least the suspects helped move the process along by documenting themselves trying to overthrow a legitimate election. White privilege: finally an upside.
Let's take a moment to update our earlier roundups of those who were rounded up (or lost their jobs), mostly because they were certain they were above being held accountable. We're sure the list of the terrorists next door will keep getting longer and longer.
<h2>Idaho Dingus Hanging From Senate Gallery</h2><div id="1325d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="35ec93ad9aefbe494b40857bf0434ce9"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1346910868638900227" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">A protester hangs from a balcony in the #Senate Chamber after Trump supporters breached the U.S. Capitol in Washing… https://t.co/kCRIiZPDaZ</div> — Getty Images News (@Getty Images News)<a href="https://twitter.com/GettyImagesNews/statuses/1346910868638900227">1609963550.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Josiah Colt, the nice fellow photographed sitting at Mike Pence's seat on the dais in the Senate Chamber after hanging by one arm from the Gallery,<a href="https://idahonews.com/news/local/exclusive-boise-man-who-went-viral-after-storming-the-capital-voluntary-surrenders" target="_blank"> turned himself in</a> at the Ada County Sheriff's Office in Boise Tuesday. Colt had bragged in an online video about having sat in "that bitch" Nancy Pelosi's chair, because he had no idea what side of the Capitol he was even in, but later insisted he had simply <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/idaho-dingus-who-stormed-us-capitol-has-regrets-lawyer" target="_blank">gotten caught up in the moment </a>and was very sorry, and that he had actually dissuaded others from vandalizing the Senate chamber, what a hero! It's not yet clear what exactly he'll be charged with.<br></p><h2>The Other Flex Cuffs Guy</h2><div id="e5702" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="fae63b00b0e8ade4228d565640839dd4"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1348625818948300805" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Family Affair: Eric Munchel, the man seen trespassing inside the U.S. Senate with flex cuffs, went to Washington wi… https://t.co/LwoSPutsMF</div> — David Begnaud (@David Begnaud)<a href="https://twitter.com/DavidBegnaud/statuses/1348625818948300805">1610372426.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Eric Munchel, one of the two flex-cuffs-carrying guys in the Senate chamber, <a href="https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/2021/01/10/nashville-man-arrested-and-charged-capitol-riot/6608271002/" target="_blank">was arrested Sunday</a> after being identified by a bunch of people working together on Twitter. Munchel is the one who <em>wasn't </em>retired Air Force Lt Col. Larry Rendell Brock Jr, who was <a href="https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/2021/01/10/nashville-man-arrested-and-charged-capitol-riot/6608271002/" target="_blank">arrested more quickly</a> because he hadn't covered his face. Hilariously, Munchel was ultimately identified in part because he bought a lot of very pricey, distinctive tacticool gear that he also wore in other photos where his face could be seen. His mom, Lisa Eisenhart, who's also in the photo because the family that grew together did a coup together, <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/we-had-no-violent-intent-in-storming-us-capitol-says-mom-of-man-pictured-with-zip-ties-in-senate-chamber" target="_blank">told </a>the Nashville <em>Tennessean </em>that she and her son actually "saw the zip cuffs on top of an already opened cabinet in the hallway inside [the] Capitol building" and then took them to "prevent them falling into hands of bad actors," which is the very same excuse Brock made. Man, that Capitol was <em>full </em>of heroes! </p><p>Ms. Eisenhart, a nurse, also told the <em>Sun</em> tabloid that she and her son were motivated by the purest of patriotic motives: </p><blockquote>"This country was founded on revolution. If they're going to take every legitimate means from us, and we can't even express ourselves on the internet, we won't even be able to speak freely, what is America for?<br><br>"I'd rather die as a 57-year-old woman than live under oppression. I'd rather die and would rather fight," she added.</blockquote><p>As far as we can tell, Ms. Eisenhart has not been arrested despite being in the Senate chamber with her son. </p><h2>'Camp Auschwitz' Shirt Guy</h2><div id="56a88" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="57c30828d1c5ec600c57b4345a57a0dd"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1347096289893355520" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">Imagine being on the same side as someone in a Camp Auschwitz shirt https://t.co/3cymB8vG47</div> — Anna Johnstone (@Anna Johnstone)<a href="https://twitter.com/annacatherinej/statuses/1347096289893355520">1610007758.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Robert Keith Packer, the guy wearing the cheerful "Camp Auschwitz" shirt featuring the SS death's-head insignia, but with the crossbones replaced by canoe oars, was <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/13/politics/notable-arrests-capitol/index.html" target="_blank">arrested Sunday</a> in Newport News, Virginia. Like most of the others so far, he was charged with entering the Capitol without authorization and violent entry/disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. His mother doesn't seem to have been available for comment, but we can at least hope she's either mortified or no longer among us to die of shame. <strong>Note:</strong> No comments saying his prison name will be "Fudge Packer," because it's not clever, it's homophobic, and it's a prison rape joke, and <a href="http://wonkette.com/466226/programming-note-rules-for-commenting-radicals" target="_blank">we don't do those.</a> I've removed similar comments already. Jesus you people. </p><h2>Couple Of Asshole Cops From Virginia</h2><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ1NDIwMS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0MTM1OTQxNn0.6OyFtk_iyZeuH87reA9pMG3FwpW8RVTcskjKM6r3FPE/img.jpg?width=980" id="32ccb" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e9d2a3e8dd82d4c9495c179862d28165" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="700" data-height="805">
</p><p>Two off-duty cops from the Rocky Mount Police Department in Rocky Mount, Virginia, were charged in federal court Tuesday and arrested yesterday, again after <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/salvadorhernandez/police-officers-capitol-arrested" target="_blank">helping investigators considerably</a> by posting selfies of themselves during the riot on social media. Jacob Fracker and Thomas Robertson each got the usual pair of charges everyone else did. In addition to posting the selfies to social media, Buzzfeed News <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/salvadorhernandez/police-officers-capitol-arrested" target="_blank">reports </a>they also "sent copies to their colleagues in the police department, according to an affidavit."</p><p>And what nice fellows they are! Robertson described the Capitol attack as exactly that, an attack, posting a message saying </p><blockquote>CNN and the Left are just mad because we actually attacked the government who is the problem and not some random small business. [...] The right IN ONE DAY took the f***** U.S. Capitol. Keep poking us.</blockquote><p>See? They were fighting back against public health, for America and owning the libs. </p><p>Fracker posted a social media message that completely dismissed the notion he'd face consequences, because he is a patriot and he did nothing wrong, duh.</p><blockquote>Lol to anyone who's possibly concerned about the picture of me going around. Sorry I hate freedom? Sorry I fought hard for it and lost friends for it. Not like I did anything illegal, WAY too much to lose to go there but y'all do what you feel you need to lol.</blockquote><p>The two are on administrative leave while the police department investigates and finds them too embarrassing to just let off with a wag of the finger. Or until they're let off with a wag of the finger.</p><h2>Guy Leading Pack That Chased Black Capitol Cop</h2><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ1NDAzMC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyODA0NjEzMn0.Rwpf1jFj1H-zlgeQ_GAeObD-_0oyxA2IY8yY5oIZygE/img.jpg?width=980" id="17b96" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="1ca01590db2043987ba34fe99c636d47" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="980" data-height="556">
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">Image cropped from video by Igor Bobic on Twitter</small></p><p>Douglas Jensen was at the head of the mob seen <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/black-cops-blue-lives-didnt-matter-much-to-trumps-mob" target="_blank">chasing lone Capitol cop</a> Eugene Goodman up several flights of stairs in the Capitol. Jensen was easy enough to identify, CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/13/politics/notable-arrests-capitol/index.html" target="_blank">notes</a>, because he identified himself on Twitter wearing his big dumb Q shirt. Jensen was arrested in Iowa last Friday. </p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNTQ1NDA5MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzMzE2MzkwMX0.ZM28LUAGk5p0FHnDGc37sK7KV-VmPIpj15Eq-vUcUDY/img.jpg?width=980" id="e5c1d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2b081a290a57d291efbd14724ebc80d5" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-width="602" data-height="810">
</p><p>Officer Goodman is a<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/12/us/capitol-police-eugene-goodman-riots-senate-chambers-trnd/index.html" target="_blank"> goddamn hero </a>who almost certainly saved lives in the early moments of the invasion, because as you can see in the still above, from a video by HuffPo reporter Igor Bobic, when Goodman reached a hallway that led directly to the Senate chamber, he ran away from that hall, leading the mob away from it. CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/12/us/capitol-police-eugene-goodman-riots-senate-chambers-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">reports </a>that senators had not yet evacuated the chamber at the time the video was taken. </p><p>And how about we close out our roundup right there on a good note, shall we, even if it's not all the arrested idiots? We'll let you know when Officer Goodman gets the medal and promotion he more than earned. </p><p>[<a href="https://idahonews.com/news/local/exclusive-boise-man-who-went-viral-after-storming-the-capital-voluntary-surrenders" target="_blank">CBS2 </a>/ <a href="https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/2021/01/10/nashville-man-arrested-and-charged-capitol-riot/6608271002/" target="_blank">Memphis Commercial Appeal</a> / <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/we-had-no-violent-intent-in-storming-us-capitol-says-mom-of-man-pictured-with-zip-ties-in-senate-chamber" target="_blank">Daily Beast</a> / <a href="https://www.the-sun.com/news/2118042/eric-munchel-lisa-eisenhart-capitol-riot-trump/" target="_blank">Sun</a> / <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/13/politics/notable-arrests-capitol/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a> / <a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/salvadorhernandez/police-officers-capitol-arrested" target="_blank">Buzzfeed News</a> / <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/12/us/capitol-police-eugene-goodman-riots-senate-chambers-trnd/index.html" target="_blank">CNN</a>]<br></p><p>Yr Wonkette is funded entirely by reader donations. If you can, please donate $5 to $10 a month, and we'll do our best to not post selfies of ourselves doing treason. </p><p></p><p><a href="https://amzn.to/33mKzZe" target="_blank">Do your Amazon shopping through this link, because reasons</a>.</p><p></p><p></p><form name="donation" method="post" class="donation-form"><p class="subheadline">How often would you like to donate?</p><div class="form-row row--plan"><label class="plan-type__label"><input type="radio" name="plan_type" value="once" class="plan-type" required="" checked> Just once
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Oh No, Michigan AG To Witch-Hunt Rick Snyder Just For Poisoning Entire City Of Flint
Michigan AG Dana Nessel comes through.
January 13, 2021 10:58 AM
For your "damn well about time" Nice Times story today, the Associated Press is reporting that the Michigan attorney general's office is getting ready to announce new criminal charges in the ongoing Flint lead poisoning crisis. Among those to be charged will be former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, former state health department director Nick Lyon, and other Snyder administration officials involved in decisions that led to widespread lead poisoning in the mostly Black city of Flint. Snyder and his administration were widely condemned for inaction on the crisis, with many pointing out there's not a chance he'd have moved so slowly had a wealthy white community like Grosse Point or Ann Arbor suffered widespread lead poisoning
On top of the lead poisoning, Flint's water was also blamed for an outbreak of Legionnaire's disease that infected at least 90 people across Genesee County, killing 12.
The news was leaked by "two people with knowledge of the planned prosecution," who let the AP know Tuesday that the AG's office "has informed defense lawyers about indictments in Flint and told them to expect initial court appearances soon." A lawyer for Snyder says nope, nuh uh, witch hunt etc. The AP reports it didn't yet know what exactly the charges will be. Let's hope they get the book thrown at them — ideally a great big medical tome on how lead harms child development, on which they'll have to do a book report weekly, forever.
<p>Just to recap the Flint Horror Story (Sundays at 9 on ABC), it all got started in 2013 when Flint was in the process of building a new pipeline to get water from Lake Huron. Until that pipeline was completed, the "emergency manager" Snyder appointed to impose austerity on Flint got the bright idea to save money by having Flint get its drinking water from the Flint River instead of continuing with its existing system, which paid to have Lake Huron water pumped in from Detroit's water system. </p><p>One teensy problem: When the switch was made in 2014, the managers of the Flint water plant neglected to add anti-corrosive chemicals, and the change in the water started eating away old pipes all beneath Flint, causing the water to turn brown and nasty and letting lead from old pipes and solder leach into the drinking water. And state health and utility regulators signed off on all of it. </p><p>And then there was the Legionella bacteria outbreak, which Snyder and Lyon announced in January of 2016, although, as the AP <a href="https://apnews.com/article/flint-lead-water-crisis-gov-rick-snyder-801ba227340f0ac2e10e37a06a82f08d" target="_blank">points out,</a> "Lyon conceded that he knew that cases were being reported many months earlier." </p><blockquote>In 2018, Lyon was ordered to stand trial on involuntary manslaughter charges after a special prosecutor accused him of failing to timely inform the public about the outbreak. His attorneys argued there was not enough solid information to share earlier with the public.</blockquote><p>After the 2018 elections brought Democrats to power in most Michigan executive branch roles, new AG Dana Nessel astonished pretty much everyone by <a href="https://www.wonkette.com/julian-castro-lead-plan" target="_blank">dropping all existing charges</a> against Lyon and other state officials, but "without prejudice," meaning that charges could be filed again. At the time, prosecutors said the original investigation of the Flint crisis had been inadequate, so they were going to start fresh with a full investigation that they and the people of Flint could believe in, rather than moving forward with prosecutions they thought were inadequate. <br></p><p>And now Rick Snyder is looking at being brought to justice. We'll keep you updated as this develops, and we know lots of Americans will hold Joe Biden to his <a href="https://joebiden.com/clean-energy/" target="_blank">promise </a>that communities nationwide will get the help they need to have clean, safe water. Yes, even if Republicans fret about the cost. An America where kids aren't damaged by lead is going to have a lot more taxpayers, after all. </p><p>[<a href="https://apnews.com/article/flint-lead-water-crisis-gov-rick-snyder-801ba227340f0ac2e10e37a06a82f08d" target="_blank">AP</a>]</p><p>Yr Wonkette is funded entirely by reader donations. If you can, please donate $5 to $10 a month so we can help you keep the bastards honest. </p><p></p><p><a href="https://amzn.to/33mKzZe" target="_blank">Do your Amazon shopping through this link, because reasons</a>.</p><p></p><p></p><form name="donation" method="post" class="donation-form"><p class="subheadline">How often would you like to donate?</p><div class="form-row row--plan"><label class="plan-type__label"><input type="radio" name="plan_type" value="once" class="plan-type" required="" checked> Just once
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