The Capitol Rioters Who Think America Owes Them More Than a $1.8 Billion Check

A retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot was photographed in tactical gear with zip ties and discussed plans to seize members of Congress. He was convicted on six federal counts and served two years in prison, later expressing regret about the lasting image. After release, he said the optics from that day became something he could not escape. He welcomed the Justice Department’s new Anti-Weaponization Fund, a $1.776 billion program intended to compensate purported victims of a weaponized justice system, including prosecuted Capitol rioters. Other defendants praised the fund and described themselves as victims of overzealous prosecutions tied to the riot.

"Many remember him as one of the “zip-tie guys”—he was photographed crossing the Senate floor in tactical gear, white flex-cuffs dangling from his fingertips. Before actually showing up in Washington, the retired Air Force lieutenant colonel had discussed, over Facebook, seizing members of Congress. He also floated applying the same interrogation techniques he once used against al-Qaida to “gain evidence on the coup” he thought the members were perpetrating."

"He was convicted on six federal counts and served two years in prison. Even after his release, his combat-gear-clad image, zip ties in hand, became a visual he couldn't outrun. “I gave the Left a beautiful optic for that day, and I never meant to do that,” he said. “Trust me, you have no idea how much I wish I had never picked them up, but I did.”"

"So, when Brock heard about the Justice Department's new “Anti-Weaponization Fund”—a $1.776 billion program to compensate purported victims of a “weaponized” justice system, including prosecuted Capitol rioters—he felt something like relief. “I'm very thankful to President Trump for actually doing something about it,” he said, calling the fund “long overdue.”"

"Other Jan. 6 defendants we spoke with shared in Brock's gratitude, maintaining that, far from being criminals, they are in fact the victims of overzealous prosecutions tied to the Capitol riot. Treniss Evans, a Texan who drank a shot of Fireball whiskey in the speaker of the House's conference room, also praised Trump for the creation of the fund."

Read at Slate Magazine