Kidnapping plot could affect election fight
LANSING » Among the armed protesters who rallied at the Michigan Capitol against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s coronavirus lockdown this past spring were some of the men now accused in stunning plots to kidnap her, storm the Capitol and start a “civil war.”
The revelation has sparked scrutiny of rallies that were organized by conservative groups opposed to the Democratic governor’s orders and egged on by President Donald Trump. It has also prompted renewed calls from Democrats for a gun ban in the building — an effort that so far has failed even after they reported feeling threatened by rifle-carrying protesterswho entered the Statehouse.
At least one man accused of aiding in the surveillance of Whitmer’s home as part of the alleged scheme to kidnap her stood in the Senate gallery on April 30 as majority Republicans refused to
extend an emergency declaration that was the underpinning of Whitmer’s stayat-home and other restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the COVID-19 virus. “Several” of the 13 men arrested in the plots against the state government were seen at Capitol protests this year, the state attorney general’s office said.
A man whom the FBI identified in court papers as a leader in the alleged plot, Adam Fox, attended an “American Patriot” pro-gun rights rally at the Capitol on
June 18 to recruit members of anti-government paramilitary groups to attack the Statehouse, according to a federal complaint that cites a recording froma confidential informant.
“I’mnot surprised — and anyone who is just hasn’t been paying attention,” Whitmer told The Associated Press by phone on Friday. There have been Republican lawmakers and at least one sheriff at the protests, she said, “who fraternize with these domestic terror groups, who egg them on, who encourage them, who use language that incites them. They too are complicit.”
Some of the men involved in the alleged plots were members and leaders of wolverine watch men, which authorities described as“an anti- government, anti-law enforcement militia group.” Federal authorities became aware in march about an initial plan by wolverine watchmen to target and kill police, according to court papers. Officials have not indicated whether law enforcement monitored the anti-lockdown protests in April and May.
Such protests have attracted a range of people, including openly armed Second Amendment backers and members of paramilitary groups dressed in tactical gear — particularly early in the pandemic when some demonstrators displayed Confederate flags, misogynistic anti-whitmer signs and threatening images. GOP leaders have denounced such tactics while saying many people protest safely and responsibly.