Donald Trump certainly did. He’d been trumpeting his ability to draw a crowd since well before he was elected president. He sent out multiple entreaties for people to show up in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021, including one that promised attendees that the day would be “wild.” In the months since, far from chastened about how those who answered his call behaved that day, he’s boasted about how many people showed up to hear him speak outside the White House.
But those who arrived in the city that day with more overtly nefarious goals similarly understood the utility of having a large mass of people. On public forums like TheDonald.win, Trump supporters pushed people to show up in the city, appeals that sat beside plans for bringing weapons and intimidating the members of Congress who would be voting to finalize Trump’s 2020 election loss. In court documents released in recent months, extremist groups spotlighted the utility of having a huge mass of angry people show up in Washington to pressure the government.
Days after Joe Biden’s victory was confirmed, the head of the Oath Keepers allegedly published a call to action that included gathering “millions” of people in the capital to “storm” the center of legislative power. In a chat among leaders of the group the Proud Boys, one allegedly speculated about the utility of having a huge crowd overwhelm police.
“[W]hat would they do [if] 1 million patriots stormed and took the capital [sic] building. Shoot into the crowd? I think...
The President of the Association of Yorubas in Diaspora, South Africa, Dr Olusola Agbeniyi, has asked the senator representing Edo North, Adams Oshiomhole, to desist from making what he described ...