Page:Final Report of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.pdf/539

 obsession with conspiracy theories about alleged evil-intentioned elites in the Government. Rhodes has often spouted these conspiracy theories on InfoWars.

Over the summer of 2020, the Oath Keepers organized armed groups, ostensibly to serve as volunteer, self-appointed security at protests around the country. The Oath Keepers used the protests to draw in new recruits. They also built muscle memory by coordinating for these events. For example, the Oath Keepers hired Michael Greene, who later coordinated Oath Keepers' activities on January 5th and 6th, to lead security operations in multiple cities around the country. In the early part of 2020, protests against COVID-related lockdowns served as additional growth and networking opportunities. Kellye SoRelle, a lawyer for the Oath Keepers, met the Oath Keepers at a lockdown protest in Austin, Texas in early 2020. SoRelle saw these COVID events as a "coalescing moment" for different far-right groups.

The "Stop the Steal" movement created another opportunity for the Oath Keepers to grow their influence. Rhodes repeatedly amplified the stolen election conspiracy theory. On November 10, 2020, he posted a "Call to Action!" on the Oath Keepers website, alleging the election was "stolen" and exhorting his followers to "refuse to EVER recognize this as a legitimate election, and refuse to recognize Biden as a legitimate winner." Under a section entitled "What We the People Must Do," Rhodes quoted a "patriot from Serbia, who also loves America." The Serbian author described how his fellow countrymen fomented a political revolution. Parts of the statement presaged the attack on the U.S. Capitol:

Millions gathered in our capital [sic]. There were no barricades strong enough to stop them, nor the police determined enough to stop them. Police and Military aligned with the people after few hours of fist-fight [sic]. We stormed the Parliament. And burned down fake state Television! WE WON!

The Oath Keepers were obsessed with the Insurrection Act—seeing it as a way for President Trump to cling to power. Rhodes believed that the President could empower militias like the Oath Keepers to enforce law and order after other Americans refused to accept President Trump's rule. Indeed, President Trump had been intensely interested in the Insurrection Act as a potential tool to quell the protests in summer 2020. Rhodes wished the Act had been invoked then, but he did not give up on the fantasy. As mentioned above, Rhodes called for President Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act during his speech in Washington on December 12, 2020.

That day, Rhodes also coordinated with Jericho March organizers to provide security. He coordinated with a paramilitary group known as 1st