Ohio Woman Tried To Kidnap Governor, Thinks She Is Real Ohio Governor, Seems Legit

Meet Renea Turner!

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has beenone of the fewpretty much the only Republican Governor to take the COVID-19 pandemic with a modicum of seriousness. As a result, there are a whole lot of people in his state who are alive to be really mad at him about it. One of those people is Renea Turner, who previously ran against DeWine as a write-in candidate and who, now, currently considers herself to be the One True Governor of Ohio.

 
 Giphy 

Turner was so mad at Governor DeWine for the extremely mild restrictions he put on Ohio residents in the beginning of the pandemic that she was looking to assemble a "posse" to go and kidnap/arrest him for tyranny . Because that's a thing that Republicans do now. Her plan was discovered after one of the people she contacted to join her "posse" reported her to the police, noting that although they do want Governor DeWine arrested for tyranny, that should be done through the normal legal channels that exist for charging a sitting governor with tyranny for enacting safety regulations during a pandemic.

Via Ohio Capital Journal:  

"Do I think (DeWine) needs to be arrested? Absolutely," the person said. "But all that needs to happen within the confines of the law."

They claimed they were initially excited when receiving the call last Friday, thinking the conversation would be about the ongoing search from DeWine critics to find a prosecutor willing to bring charges against him.
"(The caller) said 'no, we the people, we're going to arrest him,'" the source said.

According to this person, the caller described several supposed penalties for a citizen's trial on tyranny — permanent exile or execution.

Soon after the call, they decided to contact the police.

"If I don't do something about this and something happens, I'm either legally culpable or at least I'm going to feel bad," they said. "Not that I have any love lost between me and Gov. Mike DeWine. Again, I think he needs to be in prison. But again, if (the caller) had done something … I would have felt ethically responsible, right?"

That call came before Turner donned her most regal crushed velvet dress and had a whole ceremony swearing herself in as governor last Thursday, which is of course a thing anyone can do. In fact, right now I am declaring myself Queen Of All I Survey.

There have always been people who have fancied themselves heads of state of some sort. Anna Anderson and everyone else who thought they were a Romanov, that guy in Kansas who declared himself Pope (there's a documentary and it is amazing ), tons of other antipopes, the three False Dmitris, Perkin Warbeck, Princess Caraboo and, of course, Norton I, Emperor of The United States and Protector of Mexico. As far as we know, Turner is the first pretender to the throne of Ohio.

Watch as much as you can stomach, because it is actually just incredible and it gets even better towards the end.

"Governor Mike DeWine has become concentrated, grown and has become a tyrant and will be held accountable immediately," Turner said. "He will receive a tyrant's punishment."

Most of the video is just her reading out parts of the Declaration of Independence, talking about how Mike DeWine is a tyrant just like King George, and doing the oath of office. The best part is how very seriously she takes it and how very honored and humbled she is that she has made herself governor. She got a notary public and everything. Turner even says she is available to offer advice to people in other states who would like to become governor without have to deal with any pesky elections. You know, the way America was meant to run.

Anyway! Turns out, the person who reported her is not the only person Turner got in touch with while hatching her plot. Turner actually has connections to a whole group of Republican legislators who have been spreading totally batshit lies about coronavirus and calling for DeWine's ouster — including one whom she was able to meet with in person.

State Representative John Becker says he had a meeting with Turner in the two weeks prior to police learning about her plot, during which she asked him about the circumstances around Mike DeWine's residence.

Becker told the Capital Journal he met with Turner a few weeks ago in Columbus at her request to speak about theoretical criminal charges against the governor. While his focus has been on locating a willing prosecutor, he said Turner spoke about finding a county sheriff to make the arrest.

"I just kind of shrugged my shoulders and said, 'good luck with that,'" Becker recalled.

Then came an unusual change in subject: Turner wanted to know more about the governor's residence in Cedarville. Becker said Turner asked whether the personal residence constituted public property during DeWine's term as governor.

"It was kind of a strange question," Becker said.

After the conversation ended, Becker asked Turner's question to the Legislative Service Commission, a nonpartisan group which gives private law research to lawmakers. He learned the home remains a private residence, and passed that information along to her.

Becker says he still plans on having DeWine arrested, just not like that.

It also turns out that Turner may have some connections to the Trump administration. Her former running mate, Keith Colton, worked on Trump's campaign in Ohio, which is probably how Turner got that sweet, sweet photo with Mike Pence above.

Becker is far from alone as a state legislator calling to have DeWine arrested. State Rep. Nino Vitale, who believes Bill Gates created the coronavirus, has also stated his desire to overthrow him or whatever.

Now, you would probably think that planning to kidnap and arrest the governor of Ohio would be some kind of pretty big deal. Like the kind of thing you might even go to jail for. However, charges have yet to be filed and Turner has said that all that has happened so far is that police stopped by her house to "to check out my temperament and what my plans are." Well, that and her kidnap plans being thwarted.

It's really no wonder that people like Turner and people like the 13 men who were arrested for plotting to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer think it's actually perfectly OK for them to do things like this. Their leaders basically tell them it is OK for them to do these things. You tell people for however many years that the reason they have the right to bear arms is because it is also their right to overthrow the government if they think that government is doing tyranny to them, they're gonna think it's totally fine for them to overthrow the government. Especially if they're a little bit stupid or unstable.

There's going to be more of this, and someone is eventually going to get hurt.

[ Ohio Capital Journal ]

Wonkette is fully funded by readers like you! If you love Wonkette, FUND WONKETTE.

 Do your Amazon shopping through this link, because reasons .