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ANGRY: Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer held a press conference Thursday after several men were charged with conspiring to kidnap her. Photo: Michigan Governor’s Office / Reuters
Several of the six arrested by the FBI for conspiring to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer are linked to a group of militias.
Seven other men, including some linked to the Wolverine Watchmen militia, are charged with conspiring to assassinate Michigan police and the state legislature.
The motive was allegedly what the defendant saw as Whitmer’s “uncontrolled power.” They must have practiced until September on the planned kidnapping.
The plans are said to have been to kidnap Gretchen Whitmer from her vacation home.
Andrew Birge in the indictment describes the defendants as “violent extremists.”
Whitmer herself accuses US President Donald Trump of encouraging extremist groups like these “sick and corrupt men” who attacked her.
The FBI searched this home in Hartland Township in connection with the case. Photo: JEFF KOWALSKY / AFP
By this, he means the debate against Joe Biden, where Trump was asked to distance himself from supporters of white power and right-wing extremist groups like the Proud Boys. The president responded by asking them to resign and to be prepared.
– Proud Boys, stand back and get ready. But I say this: someone must do something with Antifa, Trump answered questions from Chris Wallace of Fox News.
“When our leaders meet, encourage and partner with national terrorists, they legitimize their actions and become complicit,” Whitmer said at a news conference Thursday.
Trump to white nationalists: – Take a step back, get ready
The FBI is currently investigating both white power groups and anti-fascists.
However, after massive criticism, Trump came out and condemned the Proud Boys.
– I condemn the Proud Boys, he said in a telephone interview with Fox News in early October.
Whitmer, 49, was elected governor of Michigan in 2018, and this summer she was considered a possible vice presidential candidate for Joe Biden.
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden also says Trump’s rhetoric may have had an impact on the Michigan governor’s alleged kidnapping plans, NTB writes.
“Trump must understand that the words he speaks mean something,” he said when he arrived in Arizona on Thursday.
When asked if he thought Trump’s message on Twitter might have inspired the men accused of the kidnapping plans, he replied “yes, I agree.”
