We now know that a group of American citizens who either worked in the White House, Justice Department, or were current or former members of Donald Trump’s administration or family engaged in a prolonged effort to stage a coup d’etat. These were men and woman, many with law degrees, some of whom were elected officials or appointed to government positions as advisors or lawyers to former President Trump.
There is evidence in reports from the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 storming of the US Capitol that this group worked for months to figure out ways to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
The conspiracy, now exposed, is still alive and being perpetuated by Donald Trump, the most dangerous former president in American history. He’s running scared right now as he realizes that lawsuits in New York and Georgia are moving ahead and in his direction. He threatened the Attorney General of New York, Manhattan district attorney, and the District Attorney of Fulton County, Georgia calling them “racist” and “mentally unstable.” He repeated the same call he made that led to the January 6 attack on Congress by urging his followers to stage huge protest rallies in New York, DC, Atlanta, and other cities.
Conspiracy Groups
There were two conspiracy groups that answered directly to Donald Trump. One group operated in and from the White House, while another group set up shop in Washington’s Willard Hotel where they secured rooms to set up a “command center,” before and after the January 6 attack on Congress. The group in the White House answered to Trump and his chief of staff Mark Meadows. Meadows played a key role in the coup. The group at the Willard Hotel answered to Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani and former political advisor Stephen K. Bannon. From each of these locations these people, all answering to Trump, worked the phones, held video conferences and group meetings with the intent of convincing each other and those they contacted that the election was stolen.
However, these two groups were only a part of overall conspiracy to steal the 2020 election from President Biden. A variety of media was in play to participate in a coup d’état. A coup d’état, according to one definition, means the conspirators have control of all or part of the armed forces, the police and other military elements. John Eastman, one of Trump’s lawyers wrote an instruction manual (the memo) which was uncovered by Woodward and Costa in their book, Peril. The Memo outlined how Trump could stay in power with Pence’s cooperation and the use of the military to secure voting machines in the “swing” states. Margaret Sullivan, of the Washington Post, wrote “Eastman’s coup hasn’t happened yet. But given the media’s shrug-off, maybe all we have to do is wait.”
Social media, phone calls, zoom meet-ups, talk radio and television each played a role in the conspiracy. Candace Rondeaux, a professor of practice at the School of Politics and Global Studies and a senior fellow with the Center on the Future of War at Arizona State University, is an active member of a community of digital forensic experts. In a recent post on the Arizona State University News (ASU News) by Emma Greguska, Rondeaux said that social media played a role in the insurrection. In fact she said that right wing groups probably learned a lot by observing what the intelligence agencies in Russia used to interfere in the 2016 election.
Conspiracy Individuals
The numbers of people who took part in the conspiracy to overthrow the results of the 2020 election is overwhelming. It was a well funded and organized attempt to overthrow the will of the American people. In the chart below, I’ve made use of the work of journalists Annie Grayer and Paul LeBlanc in an article that appeared in article in CNN politics. The chart is my design, but the information is from their article.
As you look over the table, you see not only the number of groups that were involved in the coup, but the names of individuals who wanted to overthrow the results of one of one of the most secure elections in American history.
The Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th attack on the US Capitol is our best assurance that some of the people who are identified in Table 1 are held accountable. The one name that is not in the chart is Donald Trump. Of all the people in this collection of data, he is the one most responsible for the carnage that happened on January 6 and the evil that continues to this day.
In a forthcoming book, I wrote that:
The gravity of Donald Trump as president of the United States couldn’t be any clearer than what happened on January 6, 2021. On that day he incited mobs of white supremacists to storm the Capitol and try an insurrection and takeover of the United State government. Trump led a failed coup. This mob of individuals was driven by Trump’s Big Lie. Their actions stand for what has become of the Republican Party.
Unfortunately, the danger that was provoked on that day continues to this day in the form of Trumpism. Trump would likely plot to take control over the Republican Party, knowing that a majority of Republicans support him running for president in 2024.[1] He is carefully choosing those he will support in future elections, especially 2022. He is taking out his revenge on those Republicans who didn’t support him in the last days of his term. `
Jack Hassard, The Trump Files: An Account of the Trump Administration’s Effect on American Democracy, Human Rights, Science and Public Health. Marietta: Northington-Hearn Publishing, forthcoming, 2022)
| Relationship to former President Trump | Subpoenas | Groups and Individuals named in Subpoenas |
| Close Allies | 5 | Kevin McCarthy, House minority leader Jim Jordan, House lawmaker Scott Perry, House lawmaker Sean Hannity, Fox host Ivanka Trump |
| Family Members Phone Records | 3 | Eric Trump Donald Trump, Jr. Kimberly Guilfoyle Ivanka Trump |
| Jan. 6 Rally Organizers | 21 | Amy and Kylie Kremer, Founders Women for America First Caroline Wren, Organizer of January 6 rally VIP Advisor Katrina Pierson, former Trump campaign official, organizer of January 5 and 6 rallies Ali Alexander, Nathan Martin, Dustin Stockton, & Jennifer Lawrence all connected with “Stop the Steal” movement Roger Stone, well known Trump confidant Alex Jones, conspiracy theorist And eleven others 11 |
| Groups/Individuals l\Linked to Jan. 6 Rally | 7 | Proud Boys International, LLC Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, Chairman of Proud Boys Oath Keepers Elmer Stewart Rhodes, president of the Oath Keepers Robert Patrick Lewis, Chairman of Ist Amendment Praetorian Nicholas J. Fuentes, America First and “Groyper” Patrick Casey, affiliated with America First and “Groyper” |
| Advised on Election Fraud | 3 | James P. “Phil” Watson, retired Army colonel Andy Surabian and Arthur Schwartz, strategists, & advisors to Trump who communicated with Trump Jr. and Guilfoyle |
| Department of Justice | 1 | Jeffrey Clark, former Department of Justice official |
| 2020 Campaign Officials | 7 | William Stepien, 2020 campaign manager Jason Miller, senior advisor John Eastman, author of the coup instruction manual Michael Flynn, former national security advisor, suggested use of military in the coup Angela McCallum, executive assistant to reelection campaign Bernark Kerik, a Willard Hotel participant Boris Epshteyn, a Giuliani associate at the Willard Hotel |
| White House Officials | 14 | John McEntee, White House personnel director Kayleigh McEnany, former White House press secretary Stephen Miller, senior advisor Max Miller, senior advisor and Ohio congressional candidate. Met with Trump on January 4 to discuss the January 6 rally. Ross Worthington, senior official helped draft Trump’s January 6 speech Marc Short, former chief of staff for Pence. Cooperating with panel. Judd Deere, for press secretary helped with White House response to January 6 attack in real time. And seven others |
| Individuals Linked to Fake Electors | 14 | David Shafer, Chair Georgia GOP Shawn Still, finance chair Georgia GOP, candidate Georgia Senate The other 12 are from Arizona, Michigan, New Mexico, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin |
| Total: 9 categories | 75 individuals | Multiple groups and individuals plus more than 750 have been charged in the Capitol insurrection, 178 have pleaded guilty and eleven have been charged with sedition. |
Table 1. Subpoenas issued to Individuals and Groups participating in the January 6 Attack on Congress. Source: Grayer and LeBlanc, CNN.
The American coup continues to this day.
[1] Gabriela Schulte, “Poll: Just under Half of Voters Support Trump Running in 2024,” The Hill, October 21, 2021, retrieved November 19, 2021, https://thehill.com/hilltv/what-americas-thinking/577199-poll-just-under-half-of-voters-support-trump-running-in-2024.
I received a note on Linkedin from Paul Hillary reminding me that there were congressional members who gave “tours” to groups of people on January 5th, the day before the attack. Representative Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) accused a House Republican leading groups on “reconnaissance” tours of the building before the attack. Two other Democratic lawmakers (Rep. Steve Cohen,( D-TX) and Rep. John Yarmuth (D-KY) say they saw one Republican–Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado–with a large group in a tunnel connected to the Capitol days before the attack. To my knowledge, Boebert has not been issued a subpoena by the House Jan. 6 Committee. She claims it was her family on the tour. Others dispute it.