The MAGA-zation of the country leads to radical violence
- On This Day In The Trump Administration
- Apr 18, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Aug 18, 2024
April 19: On This Day In 2020
In late April 2020, hundreds of MAGA fans – many carrying firearms -- stormed the Michigan State Capitol in Lansing. They were furious that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer had imposed Covid restrictions. So, ignoring the stay-at-home rules, and chanting "Lock her up!," some tried to push their way onto the House floor to interfere with legislative debates.
Trump tweeted his support the next day: “These are very good people….”
History repeats: Of course that’s the same compliment Trump had paid the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville. And, of course, that scene in Michigan foreshadowed the MAGA storming of a larger capitol building, in DC, just eight months later.
But the story gets worse: A group of men in Michigan, some of whom called themselves the “Wolverine Watchmen,” were so triggered by those Covid restrictions they tried to do more than just “lock her her.” OTDI 2020 they met and crystallized a plot to kidnap and potentially even kill Whitmer. They then attended that storming in Lansing to learn more about her place of work.
Fortunately, the FBI caught them before it was too late. Fourteen MAGA boosters were charged in the scheme. Seven were convicted and sentenced to up to 19 years in prison.
When a president frequently condones and encourages violence, it’s not surprising that some supporters listen.
Dive Deeper
NBC News reported on the armed assault on the Michigan State Capitol
Here's our president's “very good people” tweet
Detroit Free Press reported on the indictments of fourteen of those people
On This Day In The Trump Administration: MAGA-zation leads to radical violence