Capitol Riot Organizer Begins To Cooperate With Jan. 6 Committee

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Far-right rally organizer Ali Alexander is now cooperating with the House committee investigating the Capitol riot, to whom he was scheduled to speak on Thursday. Alexander was involved in the putting together of rallies supporting former President Donald Trump’s false claims of election fraud, and the list of events with which he was involved included something planned for January 6 in Washington, D.C. — before the Capitol riot overtook the day’s events. Alexander has claimed, though, to have worked with Reps. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), and Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) in developing event plans — so Alexander could provide a potentially critical look at the involvement of far-right leaders in events surrounding January 6.

Besides his scheduled deposition, Alexander also agreed “to deliver a trove of documents that could shed light on the activities that preceded the attack,” The New York Times reports. Alexander — no matter his own previous remarks appearing to advocate for violence — is seeking to distance himself from what took place at the Capitol. As he put it in a statement to the committee, “Anyone who suggests I had anything to do with the unlawful activities on Jan. 6 is wrong” — although even in the foundational sense of his role in spreading lies about the integrity of the election, Alexander did, in fact, have a role in the violence. It’s those election lies that the mob used as an inspiration.

Alexander, though, sounds determined to absolve himself. Per a copy of his opening statement that was slated for use in his Thursday appearance before the committee, Alexander is insisting that he had “nothing to do with any violence or lawbreaking.” Alexander is also going after fellow rally organizers for supposedly failing to act to try and stop what was unfolding. As he put it, while he “was actively trying to de-escalate events at the Capitol and end the violence and lawlessness, it’s important to note that certain people were nowhere to be found.” He also claimed to have been “working with police trying to de-escalate the chaos.” It’s not clear what evidence that he may have to support these claims of trying to stop the violence.

Gosar, Brooks, and Biggs have all tried to set themselves apart from Alexander, who said (at an earlier point) that he and the Republican Congressmen “schemed up of putting maximum pressure on Congress while they were voting.” Perhaps the materials that Alexander is providing to the riot investigation committee can provide a clearer picture of these people’s involvement. Overall, the riot investigation committee has heard from over 275 witnesses so far — meaning that efforts by Trump and others to stall the investigation are simply not working. Read more at this link.