MAGAReport 10/4/2024 - Following orders

A text from Trump's campaign smacks of J6 orders toward violence

I get a dozen texts from the Trump campaign every day, it seems. A lot of them are just weird or cringey, but yesterday I received one that is very worrying:

I have been posting for weeks about the escalating calls for violence toward immigrants among Trump supporters. Also, the Big Lie and other election fraud conspiracy theories are prominent and emotionally charged topics right now. Trump’s text integrates these two concerns. He essentially instructs followers to stop immigrants from fraudulently voting, playing directly into the MAGA zeitgeist.

He is not coming out and saying directly that his followers should harass or harm immigrants, just like he didn’t directly say that his supporters should attack the Capitol on January 6th. But Trump knows that his supporters look to him for instructions, and that his indirect statements are taken as orders. J6 defendants have claimed in court that they felt like Trump directed them to do what they did. When some MAGA follower inevitably attacks an immigrant, I suspect they will make the same claim.

In normal political times, these worries would seem hyperbolic. But as I discussed in the last MAGAReport, Trump followers online are regularly advocating for the public murder of immigrants. Are they just waiting for an order from Trump to act?

I think Trump sees much of this as a game to play with his followers, but the risks are so high. I continue to worry about violence, especially once voting starts and Trump’s election monitoring machine kicks into gear.

As of now, there are no specific threats or plans.

In other news, I’m heading to Butler, PA this weekend as Trump returns to rally at the site of his assassination attempt. It promises to be pretty wild. Details on Sunday!