So maybe you saw the video of the crowd of people banging on the windows of the Detroit building where vote counting is happening, trying to push their way in, and chanting "stop the vote".

How does a crowd like this form? (1/8)

Here's a reporter from a small Detroit press outlet, posting an email from a man named Sean who self-identifies his job title on LinkedIn as "Director of Strategic Initiatives and Coalitions", Michigan Republican Party. (2/8) https://twitter.com/ChadLivengood/status/1324086542432874497

Chad the reporter asserts this email went out to Republicans this morning but doesn't indicate how many. The email itself asks for "election challengers". What's an "election challenger"? (3/8)

An "election challenger" is a formalized thing in Michigan elections. They *do* oversee vote counting & flag particular ballots for review by officials. However, you can't just *be one*. Your party has to formally appoint you, *before* the election. (4/8)

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/SOS_ED_2_CHALLENGERS_77017_7.pdf

So, maybe Chad's email screencap is nothing. Maybe a consultant for the MI Republican party sent an email to other party officials trying to get their registered challengers to show up, a confused local reporter got hold of it, and I— some fool— just boosted it on Twitter. (5/8)

Or maybe a Republican operative got confused about (or sought to break) MI law; blasted an email trying to get unregistered randos to swarm claiming to be election challengers; didn't give the randos contact info or details; they showed up ignorant & chanted "stop the vote" (6/8)

Maybe this is a small thing, not worth a 8-tweet thread. Or maybe this is how vote manipulations, things like the old Brooks Brothers riot, get organized and alter the course of events while a press that doesn't dig into things misses completely that they were engineered. (7/8)

It does kind of look to me (not a legal expert) like the Republican party fucked up getting their vote challengers organized and now are asking the courts to halt the vote to make up for their failure to prepare. (8/8) https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1324108300514971648