- At a rally in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, Trump supporters expressed anger at Republican officials for refusing to take part in President Trump’s attempt to sabotage the election.
- According to video footage posted online, some chanted “Destroy GOP”.
- The rally was attended by supporters including Alex Jones and Michael Flynn, and Trump took part in a support rally on a Marine One flyover.
- The anger shown by supporters of the growing split in the party between supporters of Trump’s unsubstantiated election fraud claims and those who rejected them is worrying.
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At a rally in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, Trump supporters chanted “Destroy the GOP,” expressing anger at Republican state officials for refusing to take part in an attempt to overturn the election result on the president and cling to power.
According to footage of the rally posted on Twitter, far-right activist Nick Fuentes addressed supporters, accusing them of attacking Republicans and failing to keep Trump in power.
Fuentes, in a tweet on Saturday, released a picture addressing the rally, saying, “We are going to destroy the GOP and make it truly the party that puts America first!”
Ich Nicholas J. December 12, 2020
“At the first Million Maga March, we promised to destroy the GOP if the GOP did not do everything in their power to replace Trump,” Fuentes said by a megaphone.
“When we assembled the second million maha in Washington D.C. in March, we made promises and it must happen now. We are going to destroy the GOP,” he continued, to the applause and applause of Trump supporters.
The crowd, wearing red hats emblazoned with Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan, then shouted, “Destroy GOP! Destroy GOP!”
-Jonaton F. Plancieri (i Plancierinius) December 12, 2020
There has been a split in the Republican Party in recent weeks, with Trump and his supporters attacking Republican officials in swing states such as Georgia Governor Brian Kemp.
He was one of several Republican officials in key states who refused to comply with Trump’s demands and withhold the certificate of victory for President-elect Joe Biden.
The Trump campaign has accused widespread ballot fraud in the election, while there is no conclusive evidence to support that demand. The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton seeking annulment of the election result as a decisive blow to the election.
As a sign that Trump still holds on to the Republican platform, recent Republican polls have found that most Republican voters believe his claims about mass voter fraud, while hundreds of GOP members of the House of Representatives support the failed Supreme Court case.
The rift has caused concern among some Republicans, who say Trump supporters may ignore important Jan. 5 Senate votes, preventing the party from retaining control of the U.S. Senate.
Thousands of Trump supporters attended the rally on Saturday, although the turnout at last month’s Stop the Steel rally in the US capital was said to be large. Supporters in attendance included conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and former National Security Director Michael Flynn.
An Don Schavino December 12, 2020
On his way to the Army-Navy game, Trump flew over the rally several times in Marine One, in support of the protesters.
Later, violence erupted as members of the far-right Pride Boys clashed with supporters of the far-left Antifa group. The Washington Post quoted DC Fire Department spokesman Doug Buchanan as saying four people had been admitted to hospital with stab wounds.