I guess it should come as no surprise that white supremacists in Michigan were plotting to overthrow the state government. It reminds me of the BlacKkKlansman, where a black cop was able to infiltrate the local klan in Colorado Springs, which was based on a true story by the way. Fortunately, these guys aren't very smart as you can tell by their mug shots. The FBI had long figured out the plot, it was just waiting for enough incriminating evidence to build a strong case against them. Maybe these were the guys the President was urging to stand down, at least until after the election?
While it is not the first time we have heard of such plots, it was a bit scary to think these guys were spread out all over the state. Several of them were part of the "Wolverine Watchmen," one of many militia groups operating in the state. If you recall, Timothy McVeigh hung out with Terry Nichols on a farm in Michigan, accumulating enough fertilizer that he was eventually able to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. Michigan has long been a den for these extremist groups. So, you have to take any threats you hear about seriously.
Trump would like us to think he was on top of this investigation all along, miffed that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer could dare say his rhetoric inspires such individuals. He's had a long standing feud with Whitmer ever since coronavirus broke out in March. Michigan was one of the early states to get hit hard and she imposed a lockdown that also upset the far right. They besieged the state capitol at one point, which Trump lauded. It seems the COVID cocktails he has been taking have impacted his memory.
The president has been all over the place since being diagnosed with COVID, unable to hold his thoughts together, much less present any kind of coherent campaign strategy, deeply worrying his electorate. I see this on fb, where my conservative friends are getting desperate. In Michigan, his mental breakdown appears to have unleashed all the pent-up frustrations of local militia groups, who are venting their anger on Whitmer as they fear the Democrats may soon take over the whole country. It's tough to let go of your chosen leader even as he drifts deeper into dementia. It's like being forced to admit Uncle Speck is no longer all here.
However, it's not like these white supremacists ever had any special affinity toward Trump. They just saw him as their Trojan Horse to get through the political walls of Washington and wreak havoc on government as we know it. Many of them hang out on farms or deep in the woods awaiting the zombie apocalypse, which they thought Trump would usher in. They are notoriously anarchist, and looking for any excuse to take up arms against the government, be it local, state or federal.
Whitmer has been their foil for the past several months. She has been the target of numerous death threats, even before that ugly rally in Lansing back in May. She has had to fortify the governor's residence and take a number of security measures against these credible threats to her life. Through it all, Trump sided with the far right groups, never once extending Gov. Whitmer any support. While Trump hates women in positions of power, especially when they don't defer to his "ultimate authority," this was truly beyond the pale. As a result, we see these threats are indeed very real.
Little wonder the governor lashed out at Trump and his campaign for continuing to say all sorts of nasty things about her. She has been living under armed guard for months now, all because she had the audacity to impose a lockdown when coronavirus threatened to ravage the state.
Her actions saved countless lives, as Michigan has been one of the few states to bring the pandemic under control, lift lockdowns and bring some measure of normalcy back to people. They are still not out of the woods, but Whitmer received near universal praise for her actions, albeit not from Trump and the "proud boys."
So, we see yet another attempt to take her life. We can only shudder to think what these "Wolverine Watchmen" would have done with her had they been able to pull off their daring caper. It certainly would have sent this election into a wild tailspin. Fortunately, the FBI still appears to act independently from the White House and is able to continue its fine work.
She did thank the FBI, Donald, just not you personally. Why should she?
Comments
Post a Comment