In the fallout over the Capitol attack earlier this month, some of the rioters have attempted to downplay their involvement, saying they were merely “caught up in the moment.”
But it has become disturbingly clear, in the weeks since Donald Trump’s coup attempt, that some of these extremists not only meant business, but came prepared.
Militia members reportedly strategized their attack on the Capitol both before it happened and as it played out, with designs on making “citizens’ arrests” of lawmakers.
A Texas man, who has since been arrested, allegedly wanted to assassinate Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
“This was more than a group of people swept up in the emotions of the moment,” as the Atlantic’s David A. Graham put it this month.
“Within the mob were radicals plotting to kill or kidnap the vice president and members of Congress.”
An exhaustive Wall Street Journal analysis found that the Proud Boys appeared to have coordinated and instigated major parts of the deadly attack. »
