Donald Trump Donor Who Funded Capitol Rioters Spoke Of ‘Armed Conflict’ In 2019, Report Says
Rebekah Mercer, a billionaire American heiress and Republican Party political donor who allegedly funded many of the individuals linked to the Capitol riots, reportedly spoke of armed conflict in 2019.
In a Wednesday piece for The Intercept, Matthew Cunningham-Cook pointed to Mercer’s 2019 book, What I Believe, which is a transcript of her 2018 speech to the right-wing publisher, Encounter Books, at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C.
“[W]hat is the state of [the American] experiment today?” she asked.
“‘Now we are engaged in a great civil war,’ said Abraham Lincoln at Gettysburg in 1863. One hundred and fifty-five years later, it is barely hyperbolic to echo the Great Emancipator. We are not yet in armed conflict, but we are facing an ever more belligerent, frantic, and absurd group of radicals in a struggle for the soul of our country.”
Cunningham-Cook pointed to a previous report from The Intercept that claimed Mercer funneled money to various right-wing groups and individuals that were linked to the Capitol riots. Some of these individuals include Stop the Steal organizer Ali Alexander — who is allegedly on the run from law enforcement, per this tweet — Arizona Republican Party Chair Kelli Ward, and GOP Rep. Mo Brooks.
The article underlined that both Alexander and Brooks have been accused of using “violent rhetoric.” Notably, Alexander said he was willing to give his life for the “fight” against the 2020 electoral results. His comment was later amplified by the Arizona GOP Twitter account.
“This is what we do, who we are. Live for nothing, or die for something,” the account tweeted.
Elsewhere, Cunningham-Cook noted that Mercer used her book to accuse progressives of campaigning against American institutions at the behest of Italian Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci. He added that her work is rife with “incendiary rhetoric” and includes attacks on the mainstream media, Antifa, and drug use.
Mercer and her family were some of the most prominent donors to Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. In particular, they allegedly spent over $22 million to support the former president and his allies. Although they spent less on his 2020 campaign, they collectively funneled over $1.8 million into GOP election efforts.
According to The Intercept, the delay in the release of non-profit financial information and the ability to hide dark money donations mean that it will likely be “several years” before the public is aware of how much Mercer’s family spent on influencing the 2020 election.
As The Inquisitr reported, Mercer backed the Make America 1 Super PAC and was also part of Trump’s Executive Transition Team following his 2016 victory.
