Read on Twitter
#MilitaryCoup thread
I want everyone to understand that Trump attempted a military coup, because it's not over. He told his militia never to give up. There will be a 2A rally on 1/17 - which is undoubtedly code for armed sedition - and inauguration is a target on 1/20. /1
I want everyone to understand that Trump attempted a military coup, because it's not over. He told his militia never to give up. There will be a 2A rally on 1/17 - which is undoubtedly code for armed sedition - and inauguration is a target on 1/20. /1
How did we get from attempted military coup to militia? Only because it failed. Trump started by doing what he does best. Nurturing an international conspiracy involving people loyal to him and threatening people not loyal to him. /2
It worked with his "red sea conspiracy" allies, Russian master and Giuliani's "October surprise" of Wiener's laptop in 2016. /3
Moreover, his hand-picked AG ensured that the SC report on "Russian connections" never got a serious look by most people, both citizens and people in DOJ. Where it *did* lead to convictions, he pardoned them. In other words, he got away with it. /4
So why wouldn't it work again in 2020? This time the most visible exposure was extorting Ukraine. He again averted consequences when Senate refused to convict him. /5
This is when he really what I called at the time "floored it" and "hit the gas" with many of his most heinous policies and lawless actions. But let's focus on the election. /6
While Giuliani and others (see "BLT" conspiracy) roamed around the World looking for dirt on Bidens, with limited success, he looked for things he could corrupt domestically. /7
He looked to legislatures to change the election laws. He seized on the opportunity provided by the pandemic, because of mail in voting, to sew distrust in the election. It was theater for the court of public opinion. /8
As the election approached and certainly thereafter, he involved the courts at every possible opportunity. This is his strong suit. He believes that nothing is illegal if he can manipulate court proceedings in his favor and get away with it. /9
Failing that, he'll drag on the proceedings as long as possible to come up with new ideas. Despite his skill and his AG in the DOJ, and the millions spent on many high price lawyers, he failed spectacularly over 60 times. Gee I wonder why that was. /10
We found out later, anyway, that his previously fiercely loyal AG did not support the effort. Simultaneously with this, he continued to work on the legislatures of states, seemingly failing to realise they can't legislate his way into the WH. In fact, he knew that. /11
Again, he'll do whatever he thinks he can get away with. Which is basically anything, since impeachment failed to remove him. /11
So he had to also simultaneously, as he got more and more desperate, try to bully state executives (those who certify elections) into recounting and, after the recounts changed nothing, changing the results anyway. There are many public reports of this, which I won't go into. /12
Most notable was the taped phone call in which he threatens Secretary of State for Georgia Raffensperger with criminal jeopardy if he doesn't change the results. He stood strong an despite all this, nothing changed any of the certified results. /13
So he started to brainstorm more ideas, with the field narrowing dramatically. The ideas that came up at an Oval Office meeting included some shocking ideas that were largely shot down by the adults in the room. /14
One was claiming that Pence has Constitutional authority that he doesn't - I won't get into why, but I could - to choose from a buffet of alternate electors. He made sure that he had a slate lined up in every "contested" state. /15
I am a bit disappointed that he did not have standing in a case that would have otherwise told him that that illegitimately offering a slate of Trump electors does not a "contested state" make, but I digress. /16
This played out in a very ugly manner, as he attempted to bully and vaguely threaten Pence over and over as Pence stood strong. /17
This of course eventually lead to a mob roaming, with weapons and plastic "zip tie" handcuffs roaming the halls of Congress shouting "where is Pence?", with a gallows set up for him outside. /18
This is murder of the VP, but of course they thought of it as an extra-judicial execution of a traitor who committed treason. /19
Another idea at the Oval Office meeting was martial law. The idea was that they could force a do-over of the election. This was impossible of course, so the next best thing is a military coup. And now I get to the point, I promise. /20
Many major media reports tell a story of a purge of the DOD that began last year, up to secretary Mark Esper himself but encompassing a large group of anyone who might be useful but is not loyal. /21
Esper's firing was explicitly because of his unwillingness to cooperate with Trump in the aftermath of the election, per reporting. Having purged the DOJ, he persistently raised the idea of the military helping even when no plan for an impossible do-over surfaced. /21
You might not think that's an attempted military coup, but you must look at it in the context of everything else (more to come). It was his last resort. When he just as persistently faced push-back he had little choice but to raise his own army. /22
His self-funded "stop the steal" under the guise of a PAC that raised over $300 million and was involved in the protest 1/6, the day that represented the last best chance to overturn the election. /23
Populated by Proud Boys, white supremacists, neo-Nazis and the like. /24
When they took advantage of Summer protests against police murdering black people to promote violence and a false flag Antifa narrative that still rages, Trump eventually told them to "stand down and stand by". /25
We all knew what that meant. He wanted them to be his militia and he would tell them when it was time to "activate". /26
Until then, they should "stand by" and concede trying to further their own purposes, which could backfire politically. They should "activate" only when it's time to fulfill Trump's purpose. /27
Trump remaining in power became their only true purpose. Trump is such an expert propagandist that they did this willingly. /28
He made it clear that 1/6 was the day. And on that day, with tens of thousands present, he gave a masterful propaganda speech that related them to himself and spoke of the only thing that "we" should be doing, and that was storm the Capitol. /29
If the military is not loyal enough despite a purge, he knew his supporters would be. /30
Now here's the other piece. For hours, he refused to request National Guard. It was Pence that had to eventually do it. If he wanted to stop it, he would have called them in much sooner. /31
He knew they were loyal to law and order, not to him, and he did not have direct control over them. /32
Everyone had some idea what was coming, despite what Capitol Police said about a lack of (specific?) intelligence. It was public knowledge. Yet they far under-manned on purpose. /33
He thought they would be loyal to *him* over law and over. He has more direct control of the military over any of the other agencies, especially after the purge, and they are a fighting force that takes orders. Not law enforcement. /34
Remember, the militia had a mission, and there is emerging evidence that they had help from the inside. If they had the cooperation of the military, they would have been successful. /35
We were lucky enough to avoid mass death and destruction, only because despite being armed and having overwhelmed the Capitol Police (the ones that opposed them), they had a focus on their mission. They had been training for this for weeks. /36
They will be back. Probably multiple times. And they don't stop just because Biden is President, either. There is a very real risk to the lives of Pence and Biden in particular, but also Congressmen, law enforcement, National Guard and them militia themselves. /37
If we do not learn from 1/6 and are prepared, the loss of life could be far greater than 5. Law enforcement (if you're not black) only kill if they have to. It was that restraint in the fact of a nation screaming for a resolution that prevented a bloodbath. /38
We might not get so lucky next time. What follows are major media reports presented as evidence of an attempted military coup. /38
I know that some of this has been a little muddled and at times I could have gone into more detail or shown the evidence. But I have a life 
So tell me what I can do to back this up more or be more informative and I'll try. /end
So tell me what I can do to back this up more or be more informative and I'll try. /end
When I said that 2020 was like 2016 as in why wouldn't it work again, I forgot to mention that we even had a Giuliani October surprise laptop (this time Hunter Biden's instead of Anthony Wiener's). You can't make this shit up. /PS
