Trump ‘Liberate’ Tweet Didn’t Birth Michigan Plot, FBI Says
Trump ‘Liberate’ Tweet Didn’t Birth Michigan Plot, FBI Says
(Bloomberg) -- The militia plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and overthrow the state’s government took root before President Donald Trump encouraged his Twitter followers to “liberate Michigan” from coronavirus lockdown, an FBI agent testified.
Trump’s April tweet came up at a preliminary hearing on Friday for five of the 14 men charged in the case. Federal Bureau of Investigation agent Richard Trask was asked by Gary Springstead, a lawyer for accused plotter Ty Garbin, if the president’s words prompted the defendants to act.
“I cannot speculate as to their thoughts on those comments,” Trask said of Trump’s tweet. “I believe this discussion was before those comments.”
Springstead pointed out that the complaint alleges the men sought to carry out their plot before the Nov. 3 election. He asked why the date was significant, but the agent ultimately couldn’t say.
“Were they supporting of the president’s comments about this, about ‘liberate Michigan’?” Springstead asked.
“I’m not aware of comments one way or another,” Trask said.
The militia was brought to the FBI’s attention by local law enforcement in March, when members of the group were attempting to get the home addresses of police officers, according to the criminal complaint. Trump’s tweet -- one of several that urged the liberation of Democratic-run states with strict lockdown measures -- was posted on April 17. Most of the militia meetings where the alleged plot was discussed took place in June, court records show.
Trump’s tweet isn’t mentioned in the complaint but was widely criticized at the time for seeming to encourage potentially violent conflict. Armed protesters subsequently marched into the Michigan statehouse to urge an end to the state’s lockdown. Vice President Joe Biden blamed Trump’s words for the plot against Whitmer.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Sally J. Berens concluded Friday’s hearing by ruling the government had probable cause to take the case to a grand jury. The U.S. didn’t need to show the men had “signed on a dotted line” to join the conspiracy -- only that they had “unity in purpose,” she said.
Earlier this week the judge rejected bail requests from three of the defendants, Kaleb Franks, Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta, who were ordered detained.
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