The FBI has not had a good run lately. Many questions have been raised regarding the FBI’s biases and objectivity since the raid at the Trump home. However, the FBI has been distrusted since the raid. The DOJ has moved to prevent the publication of an affidavit which would reveal the probable reasons for Monday’s raid, further increasing the distrust in the FBI.
Let’s add another question. It is about the Whitmer kidnapping investigation.
A witness from the FBI was presented to the jury Monday. The case involves two people who are accused of plotting to kidnap the Michigan governor. Gretchen Whitmer is being retried following a previous jury’s inability to deliver a verdict. Dan Chappel (an FBI informant) testified to his participation with the Wolverine Watchmen. He was there at a demonstration at the Michigan Capitol against COVID lockdowns on April 30, 2020.
Buzzfeed’s Ken Bensinger reports that Chappel was carrying a wire from the FBI during the event. There was at most one FBI informant present during the COVID lockdown protest. Chappel claimed that he was afraid of the violence outside and told his FBI agents. According to Bensinger, the FBI specifically requested that the Michigan State Police let people into the building to “de-escalate” the situation.
NEW: A FBI informant says that on April 30, 2020 the Michigan State Police permitted armed protestors into the Capitol in Lansing at the FBI’s direct request. The FBI wanted to “de-escalate the situation.” pic.twitter.com/MAGn8bcmrx
— Ken Bensinger (@kenbensinger) August 15, 2022
Michigan Capitol: Protesters move in. Hoise floor was blocked off by a crowd. Many Michigan State Police officers and House sergeants blocking the door. pic.twitter.com/4FNQpimP4W
— Rod Meloni (@RodMeloni) April 30, 2020
Now I have some questions. What percentage of these events were attended by FBI informants. If you really believed there were a chance of violence why would you allow people to enter the building? How does that “de-escalate” the situation? That doesn’t make a lot of sense. Maybe it makes sense if you don’t want to de-escalate. Fortunately, there wasn’t any violence.
But the FBI’s reported actions in the matter caused a furor on social media. People both on the left and the right decried the FBI’s alleged action. The left claimed that the FBI had been infiltrating events since years, and then suggested they were supporting people on the right. The right wing made a parallel to Jan. 6 because some people who were permitted into the Capitol that day thought it was about de-escalating, rather than escalating.
There’s some kind of pattern here https://t.co/EWVYpJRkbS
— 12 Ball (@BoltzmannBooty) August 15, 2022
We need to tell the feds this many times.
This is who they have ALWAYS been. If you’re shocked by this, then you haven’t paid the slightest attention, & you need to get out of your bubble of privilege and see what it’s like for the rest of us. https://t.co/h165jMzDkp
— Aji #ReturnALLTheStolenChildren Wings (@Ajijaakwe) August 15, 2022
So when you see things like this, it’s just another indication that the FBI has burnt its credibility on all sides of the aisle at this point. To add to the list of things GOP legislators need to investigate,