Former U.S. President Donald Trump's calls for protests ahead of his anticipated indictment in New York have generated mostly muted reactions from supporters, with even some of his most ardent loyalists dismissing the idea as a waste of time or a law enforcement trap.
Around the time the Manhattan courthouse complex opened Monday morning, a New York Police Department truck began dropping off dozens of portable metal barricades that could be used to block off streets or sidewalks.plans for a protest at an undisclosed location in Manhattan
Ali Alexander, who as an organizer of the "Stop the Steal" movement staged rallies to promote Trump's baseless claims that Democrats stole the 2020 election from him, warned Trump supporters that they would be "jailed or worse" if they protested in New York City.One of Alexander's allies in the "Stop the Steal" campaign was conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who amplified the election fraud claims on his Infowars show.
Since then, about 1,000 participants have been arrested, many racking up steep legal bills and expressing regret and contrition in court for their actions. Some have complained of feeling abandoned by Trump. And conspiracy theories that the riot was fueled or even set up by undercover law enforcement informants in the crowd have continued to flourish online, with Trump supporters citing that angst as a basis for steering clear of a new large-scale protest.
John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab who has tracked the "Stop the Steal" movement online, said anxiety over being entrapped by so-called agent provocateurs feeds a "paranoia that if they go and do violence, they may get caught and there may be consequences." The conflicted feelings over how far to support Trump in his fight against prosecution extends into the political realm, including among fellow Republicans seen as likely opponents in the 2024 race.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, an expected GOP presidential candidate, criticized the Trump investigation on Monday as politically motivated but also threw one of his first jabs at the former president in a move likely to intensify their simmering political rivalry.
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