War In Afghanistan

Gen. McChrystal: We've Shot 'An Amazing Number Of People' Who Were Not Threats

Justin Elliott | April 2, 2010, 3:09PM

Gen. Stanley McChrystal and a convoy in Serobi, Afghanistan

In a stark assessment of shootings of locals by US troops at checkpoints in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal said in little-noticed comments last month that during his time as commander there, "We've shot an amazing number of people and killed a number and, to my knowledge, none has proven to have been a real threat to the force."

The comments came during a virtual town hall with troops in Afghanistan after one asked McChrystal to comment on the "escalation of force" problem. The general responded that, in the nine months he had been in charge, none of the cases in which "we have engaged in an escalation of force incident and hurt someone has it turned out that the vehicle had a suicide bomb or weapons in it."

In many cases, he added, families were in the vehicles that were fired on.

Read more »

American Crossroads

Gearing Up For Midterms, GOP Heavyweights Raise $30M For New 527 Group

Justin Elliott | April 2, 2010, 1:30PM

Former RNC Chair Mike Duncan and former White House adviser Karl Rove

Some of the biggest names in the GOP are organizing an outside group to help Republicans win in the 2010 midterms -- and donors have already pledged a whopping $30 million for the new project, according to National Journal.

The new group -- which, as a 527, can collect unlimited soft money donations and won't be regulated by the Federal Election Commission -- is called American Crossroads. It's a name you'll likely hearing a lot, in part because, as the Wall Street Journal points out, the group's ambition to raise $52 million makes it "the largest ever planned by a pro-Republican outside campaign entity."

Read more »

Right-wing extremism

Extremist Group Presses Govs To Step Down -- Seeking 'Final Remedy To Enslavement'

Zachary Roth | April 2, 2010, 11:25AM

Logo from the Guardians of the Free Republics Web site

In the latest flareup of extremist anti-government activity, the FBI is investigating a fringe group that says it wants to "restore America" by peacefully dismantling the government.

The group, Guardians of the Free Republics, recently sent letters to at least 30 state governors informing them that if they didn't step down within three days, they would be removed, according to an internal federal intelligence memo obtained by TPMmuckraker.

Read more »

Rex Rammell

Idaho GOP Gov Hopeful: I'm OK With Militias Showing 'A Little Force' (VIDEO)

Justin Elliott | April 2, 2010, 11:18AM

Republican gubernatorial candidate Rex Rammell of Idaho

Via Suzy Khimm at Mother Jones: A longshot Republican gubernatorial candidate in Idaho says in a new interview that he has no problem with militias showing "a little force behind the scenes."

ABC's Nightline caught up with Rex Rammell at a training session of the North Idaho Lightfoot Militia. Rammell, who last made national headlines in August when he joked about buying tags to hunt President Obama, is seen in the ABC segment firing a large scoped semi-automatic rifle.

Read more »

John Ensign

New Ensign Details: 'If You Want John Ensign To Work With You, You Have Got To Hire Doug Hampton'

Zachary Roth | April 2, 2010, 10:00AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

More details have emerged about the actions of Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) in the aftermath of his 2008 affair with a top aide's wife -- already the subject of a heated federal probe.

The senator tried to help a Nevada energy company at the same time that he was urging the company to hire the aide, Doug Hampton, reports the New York Times. That suggests Ensign may have been trying to curry favor with the company in order to get it to agree to hire Hampton. Ensign was desperate to find a job for Hampton at the time, after his affair with Hampton's wife led to the end of Hampton's tenure in Ensign's office.

Read more »

Kristopher Sickles

Charged Hutaree Member: I'm No Extremist

Justin Elliott | April 2, 2010, 9:41AM

Kristopher Sickles

Kristopher Sickles, one of the alleged Hutaree militiamen accused in a plot to kill police and the creator of a series of colorful YouTube videos, insists in a statement released by his brother that he is "not an extremist, racist or a cop killer."

"My intentions were good and I am simply guilty by association and personally had no intentions of harming any person, member of law enforcement or the United States government," said Sickles, of Sandusky, Ohio, according to the Dayton Daily News."I would never blindly follow or assist a group who obviously had a different agenda than my own," he said.

Read more »

Right-wing extremism

Going To Extremes: The Obama Era's Top Ten Anti-Government Flare-Ups

Zachary Roth | April 1, 2010, 6:35PM

Clockwise from top left: David Stone, Sr., John Patrick Bedell, Joseph Stack and James von Brunn

The charges filed this week against nine members of the Hutaree Christian militia group have re-focused attention on the resurgence over the last year or so of the broader militia movement.

That resurgence has been driven in part, say experts, by the election of President Obama. But during the Obama era, threats of anti-government violence -- and even the real thing -- have become more widespread. In fact, with disaffected Americans from Massachusetts to California freaking out against the Feds en masse, it sometimes seems that going postal has become all the rage. Of course, in some cases, that anti-government animus long predates the election of our current president. But there seems to be something about the current climate that's contributing to the rash of incidents.

Read more »

Jim Greer

Florida GOP Gone Wild: Donor Money Used As Slush Fund?

Justin Elliott | April 1, 2010, 1:25PM

Former Florida Republican Party Chair Jim Greer and former state House Speaker Marco Rubio (R-FL)

Over the past year, we've seen example after example of Florida GOP leaders using party credit cards for lavish personal spending -- from an $839 Starbucks bill to a $134 haircut and, now, a new allegation that the party chair used official funds to enrich himself.

Yesterday, we passed along the news that former FL GOP chair Jim Greer is under criminal investigation for allegedly awarding himself a lucrative party fundraising contract.

Read more »

Kristopher Sickles

'Scar My Tattered Body No More With Your Punishing Dildo Mallet': Accused Militia Plotter Bared Almost All In Film (VIDEO)

Zachary Roth | April 1, 2010, 10:39AM

Kristopher Sickles

In the last few days we've told you about Kris Sickles, aka "Pale Horse," who in the past has posted videos urging people to arm themselves and march on Washington, and this week was charged -- along with eight other members of the Hutaree, a Christian militia group -- with seditious conspiracy in connection with an alleged plot to kill law enforcement.

But Sickles, who in those videos identified himself as a member of the Ohio Militia, may also have a lighter side. The accused plotter looks to have starred in a deeply Not Safe For Work movie, filled with cursing, mock violence, pot jokes, and sound effects conveying flatulence. Sickles appears entirely naked but for a mask of President George W. Bush that obscures some, but not all, of his genitalia.

Read more »

Common Sense Issues

Push Poll Group Returns: Says Senator Supports 'Health Care For Homosexuals'

Zachary Roth | April 1, 2010, 10:13AM

Republican senate candidate Mike Lee of Utah

They're baaaaaack!

Long-time readers may remember Common Sense Issues, a group that gained brief notoriety during the 2008 GOP presidential primary for launching a massive barrage of push poll calls in support of Mike Huckabee. One typical call claimed that John McCain supported "experiments on unborn babies."

Read more »

C Street

Ohio Pastors File IRS Complaints Over C Street House

Rachel Slajda | April 1, 2010, 9:58AM

C Street House

The C Street Center, a boarding house for Christian lawmakers made famous by its role in the Ensign and Sanford scandals, is facing two complaints from a group of Ohio pastors. The pastors allege that the center is improperly using its tax status to offer below-market rents to members of Congress -- a charge that could ensnare the members as well.

The 13 pastors, who say they're concerned about the separation of church and state, filed one complaint with the IRS arguing that C Street has improperly declared itself a "church" for taxation purposes on February 23. Their second IRS complaint, filed this week and obtained by TPM, alleges that C Street's rent is much lower than market price. The problem, according to the complaint, is that the members are either not paying taxes on that extra income, or that they're receiving unreported gifts.

Read more »

Hutaree

Prosecutors: 46 Guns Found In Home Of Alleged Hutaree Member

Justin Elliott | April 1, 2010, 9:18AM

Members of the Hutaree militia: Joshua Stone, Tina Stone, David Stone, Jr. (left-right, top row); Michael Meeks, David Stone, Sr., Joshua Clough (second row); Kristopher Sickles, Jacob Ward, Thomas Piatek (bottom row).

FBI agents found 46 guns and 13,000 rounds of ammunition in the Indiana home of one of the nine alleged members of the Hutaree Christian militia, prosecutors said at a hearing Wednesday.

That man, Thomas Piatek, was ordered held without bond and will face charges with the other charged Hutaree members in Detroit.

Read more »

Hutaree

Hutaree Member Angered By Fake Hamas Resettlement Bill

Justin Elliott | March 31, 2010, 4:04PM

Tina Stone

The Detroit Free Press notices that charged Hutaree militia member Tina Stone bemoaned the passage of H.R. 1388 on her Facebook page recently. That bill has been the subject of a false chain email that warns President Obama provided money to settle Hamas members in the United States.

(Stone made the statements on the same page that features the militia wedding photos we told you about yesterday.)

"H.B. 1388 Passed.... It's bad news for us all," she wrote.

Read more »

Militias

FBI Deems Risk Of Militia Violence 'Low'

Justin Elliott | March 31, 2010, 2:34PM

Police in Wheatland Township, Michigan, during the Hutaree raid

In a bulletin distributed to police departments and obtained by the AP, the FBI concludes that in the wake of the arrests of members of the Hutaree militia "the likelihood of violent conflict from the remaining group members or other militia extremists" is "low."

The FBI has seen an increase in "chatter" from militias and other extremist groups. But the fact that the arrests of the nine Hutaree members -- charged in an alleged plot to kill police -- went smoothly eased authorities' concerns of any blowback, according to the AP.

Read more »

Jim Greer

FL GOP: Our Former Chair Is Under Criminal Investigation

Zachary Roth | March 31, 2010, 2:07PM

Former Florida Republican Party Chair Jim Greer

The former chair of the Florida GOP -- a close ally of Gov. Charlie Crist -- is said to be under criminal investigation for a contract worth around $200,000 that he awarded to himself and his executive director. The news was revealed today by the state party, which says it uncovered the contract in the course of its annual financial audit, and referred the matter to authorities.

Jim Greer was appointed to run the state GOP by Crist in 2007, but was forced out of the job in January, after reports of lavish party spending, much of which went on the credit card of the party's executive director, Delmar Johnson.

Read more »

U.S. Attorneys

Obama U.S. Attorney Pick Criticized Over Role In Disputed Bond Deal

Justin Elliott | March 31, 2010, 1:25PM

President Barack Obama and Michael Ormsby

Mike Ormsby, President Obama's nominee to be U.S. Attorney in eastern Washington state, is being called unfit for the job by critics of his role in a 1990s bond deal that ultimately resulted in Ormsby's firm paying $1.4 million to the IRS.

Ormsby's critics, who include the former mayor of Spokane, sent a letter to President Obama and Senate leaders about a year ago when Ormsby's name was first floated for the job. Now, with Ormsby's formal nomination earlier this month, the issue is surfacing again.

Read more »

Health Care Reform

Debate Planners Can't Find Anyone to Argue That Health Reform Is Unconstitutional

Zachary Roth | March 31, 2010, 10:09AM

From left, Attorneys General Bill McCollum (FL), Ken Cuccinelli (VA) and Henry McMaster (SC)

The University of Washington tried to organize a debate on whether the health-care reform bill is constitutional. But it couldn't find a law professor to argue that it isn't, reports the Seattle Times.

"I will say that we tried very hard to get a professor who could come and who thinks this is flat-out unconstitutional," said the moderator. "But there are relatively few of them, and they are in great demand."

Read more »

Hutaree

Prosecutor: Some Militias Are Fine, But Hutaree 'Crossed The Line'

Justin Elliott | March 31, 2010, 9:56AM

Members of the Michigan militia Hutaree (clockwise from top-left): David Stone, Sr., Tina Stone, David Stone, Jr., Jacob Ward, Joshua Clough, Michael Meeks, Kristopher Sickles and Thomas Piatek

The federal prosecutor who brought charges against members of the Hutaree Christian militia tells CNN that authorities are fine with "peaceful" militias in Michigan, but Hutaree "really crossed the line."

"They advocated that government was their enemy and that federal, state and local police officers were their foot soldiers and they refer to them as 'The Brotherhood,'" said Barbara McQuade, U.S. attorney for the eastern district of Michigan, in an interview with CNN.

Read more »

Tea Party Nation

Tea Party Convention Backer Sues Organizer

Zachary Roth | March 31, 2010, 9:54AM

At a tea party in Philadelphia

In the latest sign of Tea Party rancor, the key backer of last month's national convention at which Sarah Palin spoke is suing the event's organizer, charging that he reneged on a deal to continue working together on Tea Party business.

Bill Hemrick, the founder of the Upper Deck baseball card company, loaned Tea Party Nation $50,000, which went towards the $100,000 speaking fee given to Palin. He says the money was loaned on the condition that he could remain involved with the conservative political action committee that TPN founder and convention organizer Judson Phillips said he was putting together. Hemrick says that Phillips backed out of the deal, and even barred Hemrick from attending Palin's speech. He also claims that Phillips defamed him by writing an email to supporters saying he was not "reputable" or "trustworthy."

Read more »

Hutaree

Undercover FBI Agent Helped In Sting Of Hutaree Militia

Justin Elliott | March 30, 2010, 6:20PM

Thomas Piatek

A nice catch from the Wall Street Journal: A court document in the Hutaree case appears to have inadvertently revealed that an undercover FBI agent was involved in bringing down the Christian militia group.

The indictments of the nine Hutaree members -- charged in an alleged plot to kill police -- show up in a court record database on March 23. But the indictments were still sealed at the time. The Feds didn't make arrests until this past weekend.

Read more »

Danziger Bridge

Third Cop Charged -- And Will Plead Guilty -- In Post-Katrina Shootings Cover-Up

Justin Elliott | March 30, 2010, 5:41PM

Officer Michael Hunter of the New Orleans Police

A third New Orleans police officer was charged today in connection with the 2005 shootings of unarmed civilians by police on Danziger Bridge, which took place less than a week after Katrina hit the city.

Michael Hunter will plead guilty to obstruction of justice and misprision of felony charges, his attorney tells WDSU in New Orleans. In the past month or so, two other officers have pleaded guilty to charges related to covering up the killings.

Read more »

Frontier Foundation

Rep. Buyer: Ethics Office Closes Review Of Foundation

Justin Elliott | March 30, 2010, 5:00PM

Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN)

Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN) announced today that the Office of Congressional Ethics had closed with no further action a review of his foundation, which came under scrutiny last year for collecting donations from companies seeking to curry favor with Buyer but not giving out anything for its stated purpose of providing scholarships.

The watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics (CREW) had asked OCE, the independent House ethics office, to look at Buyer's Frontier Foundation in January, citing reporting by TPMmuckraker and other outlets.

Read more »

Why Did The Times Apologize To Singapore?

Zachary Roth | March 30, 2010, 1:39PM

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and the New York Times building

Readers of the New York Times last week may have noticed an unusual "apology" issued by the paper to the government of Singapore. It read:

Read more »

Hutaree

For Hutaree, Militia Ethos Extended To Family Life

Justin Elliott | March 30, 2010, 12:50PM

A photo from the Facebook page of Tina Kelley

For the leading family of Hutaree, the armed Christian group in Michigan accused of plotting to kill police, membership in the militia went beyond paramilitary training sessions and into something resembling a full-blown lifestyle choice.

In recent wedding pictures posted on Facebook, several Hutaree members who are now in custody are shown posing in front of the militia flag with assault rifles.

Read more »

Hutaree

Expert: Hutaree Were 'Right Smack In The Middle Of The Militia Movement'

Zachary Roth | March 30, 2010, 11:05AM

Members of the Michigan militia Hutaree (clockwise from top-left): David Stone, Sr., Tina Stone, David Stone, Jr., Jacob Ward, Joshua Clough, Michael Meeks, Kristopher Sickles and Thomas Piatek

Conventional militia organizations are racing to distance themselves from the Hutaree -- the Christian-based militia whose members were charged yesterday with conspiring to kill law enforcement as part of their preparation for the coming battle with the Anti-Christ. But that may be a tall order.

Appearing on CNN this morning, Michael Lackomar, a member of the Southeast Michigan Volunteer Militia, called the Hutaree -- also primarily based in Michigan -- "really a fringe group outside of anything we do."

Read more »

Militias

Ninth Charged Militia Member Surrenders

Justin Elliott | March 30, 2010, 8:43AM

Joshua Stone

Joshua Stone, the son of the leader of the Christian militia Hutaree who was the ninth person charged in an alleged plot to kill police, has surrendered and will appear in court today, the AP reports.

Stone was previously described as a fugitive.

Read more »

Hutaree

Accused Christian Militia Member Posted Video Last Year: 'I'm Just A Simple Militant ... What's Wrong With That?'

Zachary Roth | March 29, 2010, 2:37PM

"Pale Horse" (left), seen in an Ohio Militia video

We already told you that one of the members of a Christian militia group charged today with "seditious conspiracy" in connection to an alleged plot to kill law enforcement appears to be the extremist who over the last 18 months created widely-viewed videos that warn "our country is in peril" and urge people to take up arms and march on Washington. And it now appears that that same militia member -- Kristopher Sickles, who goes by the name of "Pale Horse" -- posted a third video in which he lambasted the "corporate media" for its coverage of the militia movement.

The video, posted last August to YouTube and still available, sheds further light on the mindset and philosophy of at least one of the nine Hutaree members accused today of conspiring to kill police officers, then bomb their funeral in a bid to kill more law enforcement personnel, as part of a plot to "oppose by force the authority of the U.S. government."

Read more »

Nathan Deal

Ethics Office Releases Report On Fmr. GOP Rep's Auto Business

Justin Elliott | March 29, 2010, 1:44PM

Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA)

In an unusual move, the independent House ethics office has released a report on former Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA), whose sweetheart business arrangement with the state of Georgia has drawn media scrutiny.

Deal, who is running for governor, resigned from Congress late on the night of March 21, after casting a vote against the health care legislation.

Read more »

Hutaree

Christian Militia Group Burns U.N. Flag In YouTube Clip (VIDEO)

Derek Hawkins | March 29, 2010, 1:34PM

A U.N. flag burning in a video on the Hutaree YouTube account

The Michigan militia Hutaree, whose members have been charged for an alleged plot to attack police, burns a U.N. flag in a video posted on the group's YouTube page.

The clip dated June 30, 2009, and described as "UN in America," shows flames engulfing a U.N. flag in slow motion, over the sound of "First and Last and Always," by the 80s goth-rock band Sisters of Mercy.

Read more »

Hutaree

'Our Country Is In Peril': Accused Hutaree Member Appears To Have Posted Videos Calling For Armed Marches On Washington

Zachary Roth | March 29, 2010, 11:31AM

A scene from a video on the Hutaree Youtube account

In October 2008 -- in the midst of the financial crisis, and as it appeared increasingly likely that Barack Obama would be elected president -- a man with a balaclava over his face, dressed in combat fatigues and holding an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, posted a video on YouTube. Using the alias Pale Horse and describing himself as a member of the Ohio Militia, the man warned: "Things are bad. Things are real bad, and it's going to be a lot worse--our country is in peril," before encouraging viewers to arm themselves. The video, billed as a "wake-up call" for America, was viewed more than 70,000 times before being removed last spring.

Today, Kristopher Sickles -- aka "Pale Horse" -- was one of the nine people charged with seditious conspiracy in connection with an alleged plot to kill law enforcement officers, and to "oppose by force the authority of the U.S. government," as part of a Christian militia group known as the Hutaree, based primarily in Michigan.

Read more »

Minuteman Civil Defense Corps

Minuteman Leader: When I Said To Come To The Border Locked And Loaded, I Didn't Mean Locked And Loaded

Zachary Roth | March 29, 2010, 10:07AM

A member of the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps

The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps (MCDC), the Arizona-based anti-illegal-immigration group whose members keep watch on the border, is disbanding as a national organization, after its leader asked for volunteers to come "locked, loaded, and ready," then got more than she bargained for.

On March 16, Minuteman president Carmen Mercer sent out an email to members, urging them to come to the border "locked, loaded and ready," reports the Arizona Daily Star. She added: "You are strongly encouraged to exercise your rights and duty as an American citizen to carry a long arm and if challenged use it to defend the United States of America." Mercer also suggested changing the group's rules to allow members to track illegal immigrants and drug smugglers, rather than just reporting them to the Border Patrol.

Read more »

Hutaree

Nine Christian Militia Members Charged With Seditious Conspiracy, Attempted Use Of WMD

Justin Elliott | March 29, 2010, 10:04AM

Members of the Michigan militia Hutaree (clockwise from top-left): David Stone, Sr., Tina Stone, David Stone, Jr., Jacob Ward, Joshua Clough, Michael Meeks, Kristopher Sickles and Thomas Piatek

Nine members of the Christian militia group Hutaree have been indicted on multiple charges involving an alleged plot to attack police, including seditious conspiracy and attempted use of weapons of mass destruction, the U.S. Attorney in Michigan announced this morning.

"Six Michigan residents, along with two residents of Ohio and a resident of Indiana, were indicted by a federal grand jury in Detroit on charges of seditious conspiracy, attempted use of weapons of mass destruction, teaching the use of explosive materials, and possessing a firearm during a crime of violence," according to the government's press release, which you can read in full below.

Read more »

Hutaree

Michigan Christian Militia Raided By Feds Was Preparing To Battle Antichrist (VIDEO)

Justin Elliott | March 29, 2010, 9:10AM

A scene from a video on the Hutaree Youtube account

Hutaree, the Christian militia in southeast Michigan reportedly raided by the FBI Sunday, was preparing to battle the Antichrist because "Jesus wanted us to be ready to defend ourselves using the sword and stay alive using equipment," according to its Web site.

A Joint Terrorism Task Force, led by the FBI, arrested at least seven people in three states as part of the raids on the Adrian, Michigan-based group, the Detroit News reported.

Read more »