Taking the stand for a second day, Rhodes testified Monday that he had no idea his supporters were going to join the pro-Trump mob to storm the Capitol and was upset after finding out some did. Rhodes said he thought it was stupid for any Orcoto to go to the Capitol. He insisted that this was not their “mission”. “There was no plan to enter the building for any purpose,” Rhodes testified. Rhodes is on trial along with four other defendants for plotting an armed insurrection to stop the transfer of presidential power from Republican Donald Trump to Democrat Joe Biden. Prosecutors tried to show that for the Oath Keepers, the riot was not a spur-of-the-moment protest but part of a serious, week-long plot. Rhodes’ defense centers largely on the idea that his rhetoric was aimed at persuading Trump to invoke the Sedition Act, which gives the president broad discretion to decide when military force is necessary and what qualifies as military. power. Rhodes told jurors he believed it would be legal for Trump to invoke that act and call out a militia in response to what he believed was an “unconstitutional” and “void” election. “My whole effort was in what Trump could do,” Rhodes said. Rhodes did not specify what he would like a militia to do after being called by Trump. He said disrupting vote certification was not one of his goals and expected the election to be certified. Prosecutors said Rhodes’ words showed he was using the Sedition Act as legal cover and that he was going to act no matter what Trump did. When they get a chance to challenge Rhodes this week, they are likely to highlight messages like one Rhodes sent in December 2020 in which he said Trump “must know that if he fails to act, then we will.” .
“Control of His Troops”
Rhodes also addressed another key part of the prosecution’s case: a huge arsenal of weapons the Oath Keepers had at a hotel in nearby Virginia. Prosecutors said the weapons were one element of a so-called rapid reaction force that the group could quickly deploy to Washington. Rhodes testified that the weapons were not there for that purpose and said it would take a long time to load them into a vehicle and bring them into town. Rhodes did not enter the Capitol on January 6 last year, and prosecutors described him as “a general inspecting his troops on a battlefield.” Rhodes said he simply went to the Capitol to find his followers in the Oath Keepers who had not been sent on a security “mission” protecting figures such as Roger Stone, a longtime Trump confidant. Rhodes said he didn’t even realize one of his men went to the Capitol until he saw him in an FBI photo. Prosecutors spent weeks methodically presenting evidence showing Rhodes and Oath Keepers discussing the prospect of violence before Jan. 6 and the need to keep Biden out of the White House at all costs. Among their key witnesses were two of Rhodes’ former fans who pleaded guilty to the Capitol attack and agreed to cooperate with investigators in hopes of receiving lighter sentences. One told jurors that Oath Keepers were prepared to stop the certification of Biden’s election victory by “any means necessary,” including taking up arms. Three Jurors who pleaded guilty to subversive conspiracy and entered into cooperation agreements with prosecutors, notably, were not sided with the government. It is not clear why. During cross-examination Monday, prosecutor Kathryn Rakocci showed jurors text messages between Rhodes and other Jurors leading up to the Jan. 6 trial. In a text to Rhodes, another Oath Keeper on trial, Kelly Meggs, says he is busy setting up the Quick Reaction Force, also known as the ‘QRF’. “Okay, we’ll have QRF. This situation demands it,” Rhodes replied on January 2. Rhodes said some of the messages about QRF were exchanged in a group chat where he didn’t always read everything, although he acknowledged that he was the moderator of the chat. “Sir, the buck stopped with you on this business, right?” Rakocchi asked. “Am I responsible for everything everyone did?” Rhodes asked. “You’re in charge, right?” Rakocci said. “Not when they do something out of commission, I’m not responsible,” he replied. The defendants are the first among hundreds of people arrested in the Capitol riot to stand trial on the Civil War-era charge that carries up to 20 years behind bars. The Justice Department last secured such a conviction at trial nearly 30 years ago and plans to try two more groups on the charge this year. On trial with Rhodes, who is from Granbury, Texas, is Meggs, head of the Florida chapter of the Oath Keepers. Kenneth Harrelson, another Florida Oath Keeper; Thomas Caldwell, a retired US Navy intelligence officer from Virginia. and Jessica Watkins, who led an Ohio militia group. They face several other charges besides seditious conspiracy.
