this week jessica watkins has appearances before the federal judge.t from prosecutors to keep her in jail ahead of her trial. prosecutors have called her a flight risk and a danger to the public. >> i think what we know from watkins' intercepted chats and some of the things she's said is she was prepared to go under ground, she said, if biden was elected. and so the judge has got to be asking this question, is she prepared to go under ground again. >> reporter: watkins changed her story before the court in recent days. she just retracted an account she had given the court that she met with secret service agents on january 6th. the secret service denied it. watkins still claims in court papers she was given a vip pass to the trump rally that preceded the riot and she was providing security for legislators and others in their walk to the capitol. >> they may discuss the need to protect people from a tyrannical government or make sure their freedoms are not infringed upon, but these people, this group has an ideology. they're animated by con sper see the

>> reporter: this is a file we got from the defense team for jessica watkins. is a defendant in the insurrection case. she is part of the extremist group that the justice is saying took part in the rally, but she was not involved in the riot, that she was given a vip pass, that she would be escorting people to the rally and that she met with secret security agents. we don't know the context of that and what she means by that, there wasn't much detail for us. this is what they said today. to carry out its protective functions on january 6, the u.s. secret service relied on the assistance of various government partners. any assertion that the secret service employed private citizens to perform those functions is false. now, remember this comes in a case against nine alleged members of the oath keepers militia group, and really there are more questions that are being raised about what this group was doing, what they believed they were doing. some of them, including watkins, said they believe they were responding to the call of president trump, that they were ex-mi

these three alleged oath keepers and military veterans jessica watkins, dover crawl and donovan quellst. >> they received messages while at the capitol. >> reporter: the federal claims against the oath keepers mentioned during the second impeachment trial against former president trump. >> the leader was given directions to where representatives were thought to be sheltering and instructions to, quote, turn on gas. seal them in. >> reporter: an accused leader of the group caldwell denies any involvement with the oath keepers. his attorney claims the fbi has shown no evidence of him inside of the capitol. in court papers he said he worked for the fbi and held a top security clearance since 1979. but this is also caldwell talking about members of congress on january 6th. >> every single [ bleep ] in there is a traitor. every single one. >> reporter: a source with inside knowledge of how the oath keeper operate told cnn about a dozen members were in federal law enforcement. but purposely kept off the groups' official member data base. >> would it be surprised that a member of law enforce

the latest revelation comes in the case of jessica watkins arc me tear veteran who's a leader in they told a judge arcs the inauguration grew nearer, jessica watkins indicated she was awaiting direction from president trump, specifically they say she sent a text on november 9th saying i'm concerned this is an elaborate trap. unless the potus himself activates us, it's not legit. the potus has the right to act vat units, too. if trump asks me to come,ly. this is the most direct language we've heard yet from investigators linking the trump's rhetoric to the people charged with the most militant aspects of the insurrection. watkins trained and plotted for a moment like this, prosecutors argued. they say she wore fatigues and combat gear, leading 30 to 40 people on a radio app january 6th. prosecutors are also detailing the plans of a man they say worked with watkins, thomas cal well. a fellow member of the oath keepers he discussed tr transporting weapons to the capitol by boat. he texted someone he believed was connected to another military group, the three percenters. he explained bri

we did, however, reach out to jessica watkins' public defender.s so much, sara sidner. >>> straight ahead, president biden making swift changes to immigration and border control. that could mean a reunion for families four years in the making. >>> but first, here's this week's start small, think big. >> as a children's bookstore you constantly have to be creative. >> little java stories is an independent bookstore that specializes in children's book. >> it's part of our vision at the store to have families come in, browse, take some time, do some reading. so in march of 2020 it became very clear to us that we were not going to be able to function as a normal bookstore. and we locked our doors. our immediate reaction was fear. >> to go from a store where your entire model is people coming in, to having zero browsing at all, i mean it's a complete pivot. >> all right, here we go. >> the first thing we shifted over was story time. pretty easily, just perform from my phone. >> online sales were very, very small part of our business. >> before the pand

we also tried to reach jessica watkins and donovan crowell.ey, though, are still in jail and at this moment do not have attorneys yet who are representing them. don. >> sara, i have a question for you. have any oath keepers come forward to denounce what happened on january 6th and say that they don't want any part of this group going forward? >> reporter: yeah. this is probably the strongest statement we've seen when an oath keeper group in one state breaks off from the main oath keeper, national oath keeper group. basically there was a group in north carolina that said, look, we were horrified about what we saw on january 6th. they were, according to the state coordinator, in d.c. they said they were there to support trump. but when they saw the attack going on at the capitol, they said they wanted no part of it. the men and women, they said, of north carolina believe that the national leadership, talking about the national oath keeper leadership, could have stopped this and did nothing. they said that they are going to be starting their own

one of them, jessica watkins, a former member of the armed forces, she is alleged to have planned thiskins indicated that she was awaiting direction from president trump. and after that, after election day, she was awaiting direction, according to the federal government, and even told her colleague, in that group, if trump asked me to come, i will. it's explicit. if trump asked me to come, i will. and that's apparently exactly what she did, according to the charges against her and two other members of the oath keepers, they planned this out, and came to washington with an intention to breach the capitol but victor and christi, i want to be clear, most of the people who have been charged so far are not accused of planning it out but many of them actually attended the speech, the president's speech at the ellipse, and lists to what they said, let's march to the capitol, and they did that, they went to the capitol. so it's really undercutting what a lot of the former president's lawyers were putting forward yesterday. and really connecting some of the dots on whether or not these people w

as the inauguration grew nearer, jessica watkins indicated she was awaiting direction from presidentrump. it goes on to say her concern about taking action without his backing was evident in a november 9th, 2020 text in which she stated, quote, i am concerned that this is an elaborate trap. unless the potus himself activates us, it's not legit. potus has the right to activate units too. if trump ask mes me to come, i will. again, this is an indication according to prosecutors that this is what watkins and her co-conspirators were waiting for, the signal from the president in order to carry out their plan. they went so far, chris, as to come up with an idea of moving weapons from virginia into washington across the river. again, a very elaborate plan. we're seeing new details come up almost every week in this and in some of the other conspiracies. another one that we saw today, a group of proud boys, five of them that were charged. this is the largest group we've seen so far. and in this case, you know, the prosecutors said that, you know, they had tactical gear. they were leading a g

one of the members, jessica watkins, claimed she was not a participant in the insurrection but was instead the rally. her lawyer says that watkins was there to provide security for the speakers, to provide escort for the legislatures and others as directed by the then president and to safely escort protesters away from the capitol to their vehicles and cars at the conclusion of the protest. one of the officers defending the capitol that day told abc that those so-called protesters were actually terrorists and racists whose goal was to overthrow democracy. >> i got called a [ bleep ] a couple dozen times today. protecting this building. is this america? they beat police officers with blue lives matter flags. >> for more, i'm joined by malcolm nance and paul butler, georgetown law professor and former federal prosecutor. thank you both for being here and malcolm, i retweet you a lot. we have been doing this for five years now. you wrote in a 2020 book proposal that i liberally retweeted. you wrote this. i hate being right. october 2020 book proposal, win or lose, come early 2021, the united

as the inauguration grew nearer, jessica watkins indicated that she was awaiting direction from presidentmp. and it goes on to say her concern about taking action without his backing was evident in a november 9th, 2020, text in which she stated, quote, i am concerned this is an elaborate trap. the potus has the right to activate units, too. if trump asks me to come, i will. this is an indication, according to prosecutors, that this is what watkins and her co-conspirators were waiting for, a signal from the president to carry out their plan. they went so far, chris, as to come up with an idea of moving weapons from virginia into washington, across the river. again, a very elaborate plan. we're seeing new details come up almost every week in this and in some of the other conspiracies. another one that we saw today, a group of proud boys, five of them, that were charged. this is the largest group that we've seen so far and in this case, you know, they -- the prosecutors said that, you know, they had tactical gear, they were leading a group of protesters, of rioters, past the police lines, th

we also tried to reach out to jessica watkins and donovan crowell.y are both still in jail and they do not have attorneys representing them yet. anderson? >> it's fascinating. sara sidner, appreciate. . we'll have more on this. one final piece of related breaking news. the north carolina republican party's central committee unanimously voted just now to censure senator richard burr for his vote to convict the former president. the party issuing a statement that reads in part, "the ncgop agrees with the strong majority of republicans in both the u.s. house of representatives and senate that the democrat-led attempt to impeach a former president lies outside the united states constitution." more breaking news coming up. cdc is out with new numbers on the percentage of school kids living in or near so-called red zones where covid transmission is either high or substantial. we'll tell you what that means ahead. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ...and then what happened daddy? well, see this handsome man, his name was william. and william fell in love with rose and they

we also tried to reach out to jessica watkins and donovan crowell. they are both, still, in jail.not have attorneys representing them, yet. anderson. >> it's fascinating sara sidner, appreciate it. >>> one final piece of related, breaking news. just now, to censure senator richard burr for his vote to convict the former president. the party issuing a statement that reads, in part, quote, the ncgop agrees with the strong majority of republicans, u.s. house of representatives and senate, that the democrat-led attempt to impeach a former president lies outside the united states constitution. more breaking news coming up. >>> cdc is out with new numbers on the percentage of school kids living in or near so-called red zones, where covid transmission is high or substantial. tell you what that means, ahead. this rain is bananas. lease the 2021 es 250 all-wheel drive for $349 a month for thirty six months. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. your grooming business is booming. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. the moment you sponsor a job on indeed you get a shortlist of

we also tried to reach jessica watkins and donovan crowell who are charged with conspiracy charges in far, they do not have attorneys, and they are currently in jail. john? >> it was interesting on infowars, people going on with these crazy, dangerous notions. any oath keepers who saw what happened on january 6th and have come forward and say, you know what, it's wrong, we don't want any part of this at all? >> yeah, in a really strong statement from the oath keepers in north carolina, one of the state coordinators sent a letter to the sheriff and that letter was shared with us. basically they said that they were horrified at what they saw at the capitol. that they didn't show up that day. they were in d.c. to support donald trump but when they saw the saattack on the capitol, th wanted nothing to do with it and the state coordinator said the men and women of north carolina believe the national leadership of the oath keepers could have stopped this and did nothing. they want nothing more to be -- to do with this group, and they don't want to be affiliated any more. they are going to d

this isn in the case of jessica watkins. she's a leader in this oath keepers militia.according to prosecutors, they recovered some text messages in which she's sort of a little confused and perhaps a little hesitant about coming to the january 6th rally and one of the things she says in one of these text messages, she says i'm concerned this is an elaborate trap. unless the potus himself activates us, it is not legit. she goes on to say that she'll only go to the january 6th rally essentially if she believes the president is asking for these people to come. that's exactly what ends up happening. keep in mind she is part of a broader conspiracy that prosecutors say organized even training camps before they traveled to washington. they talked about having tactical gear. they had tactical gear as they tried to lead the crowd in breaching those police lines at the capitol that day. and again, this is the most developed conspiracy charge that we've seen so far. we expect a lot more from some of the charges that are still coming. >> wow. but amazing she was literally sitting

. >> reporter: the latest revelation comes in the case of jessica wattkins. watkinsitary veteran who is now a leader in the right wing militia movement and the group the oath keepers, according to prosecutors. they told a judge, as the inauguration grew nearer, jessica watkins indicated she was awaiting direction from president trump. specifically, they say she sent a text on november 9th saying, i am concerned this is an elaborate trap unless the potus himself activates us, it's not legit. the potus has the right to activate units, too. if trump asks me to come, i will. this is the most direct language we've heard yet from federal prosecutors linking trump's rhetoric -- >> we fight. we fight like hell. >> reporter: -- to the people charged with the most militant aspects of the insurrection. watkins had trained and plotted for a moment like this, prosecutors told a judge, arguing to keep her in jail pending trial. they say watkins wore fatigues and combat gear leading 30 to 40 people on a radio app january 6th. prosecutors are also detailing the plans of a man they s

we can, however, reach out to jessica watkins' public defender, he did not return our request for comment >>> for prince harry and meghan markle are putting more distance between themselves and the royal family. the question is what's changing now that they've officially split from the crown? i'm erin. -and i'm margo. we've always done things our own way. charted our own paths. i wasn't going to just back down from moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. psoriatic arthritis wasn't going to change who i am. when i learned that my joint pain could mean permanent joint damage, i asked about enbrel. enbrel helps relieve joint pain, and helps stop permanent joint damage. plus enbrel helps skin get clearer in psoriatic arthritis. ask your doctor about enbrel, so you can get back to your true self. -play ball! enbrel may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma, other cancers, nervous system and blood disorders and allergic reactions have occurred. tell your doctor if you've been someplace where fungal infections are co

. >> reporter: the latest revelation comes from jessica watkins. right wing militia movement. they told the judge as the inauguration grew nearer, she was a waiting direction from trump. she got a text from november 9th, i am concerned this is an elaborate trap unless the potus activate us. if trump asks me to come, i will. this is the most we heard from federal prosecutors linking trump's rhetoric to the people charged with the most militant aspect of the insurrection. watkins trained and plotted for a moment like this. they say watkins wore combat gear leading 30 or 40 people on a radio app on january 6th. prosecutors are detailing the man of a man they say work with watkins. the fellow member of the oath keeper, culwell. he texted someone believed to be connected to another military group. he explains bringing weapons by boat will help them get around d.c. gun laws. they both have been charged with conspiracy. all of this as the judge released this woman from custody. rachel powell directed ri yoter with a megaphone. showcasing photos in court o

that's army veteran jessica watkins in the background and former marine domenic crawl in front. both dressed for battle inside the capitol. watkin's boyfriend knows them both. >> what is he like? >> when drunk, you want to shut up. when sober, the best person you could have. >> what was she supposed to do. >> to protect vip members within the trump rally and then of course the trump protest and some people took that to mean more than they should have. probably. he was right there with her. so was crewell, the three were the first to be indicted on federal charges of conspiracy, destruction and destruction of government property. his disdain for congress made clear before they stormed the capitol. >> every single person there is a traitor. >> and the guy you saw there calling lawmakers traitors, well, thomas called well, himself, dabbled a bit in politics. he was actually a delegate to the clark county republican convention. we reached out to the attorneys for all nine of the people wee tried to talk to, none of them had comment. back to you. >> oh my gosh, sara sidner's reportin

jessica watkins, a military veteran, sent a text shortly after the election, quote, unless the potushe potus has the right to activate units, too. if trump asks me to come, i will. the oath keepers wanted to ferry a boat into washington, d.c. they conspired other militia groups in their plan. joining me now, intelligence analyst, malcolm nance. malcolm, thanks for being here. give me a sense of the gravity here. its politics are becoming more sort of end stage where they're saying if we don't win elections, we feel we can do anything. we can disenfranchise voters, and we can also resort to violence if that's what it takes, and you have these groups willing to be the shock groups. how much danger do you think our republic is in given that? >> a pretty fair amount of danger, and i can only warn you so much, joy. i've been spouting off for the last three months that we are headed into a new phase of american domestic violent extremism where the insurrection was this flash in the pan which showed you the parameters of the organizations that were there. i really feel strongly we are helde

violent attack against what they falsely called a stolen election, but if that was a big day for jessica watkinsrom owe lie owe. >> [ bleep ]. >> reporter: so was her day in court asking to be set free while awaiting trial. cnn has now said 27 current or former military people were facing charges. watt kin is accused of conspiracy, destroying property and more. she denies it all, says she believed she was answering the call of president trump and providing security for vips but the main argument from her lawyer, she fell prey to the false and inflammatory claims of the former president, his supporters and the right wing media. however misguided, her intentions were not in any way related to an intention to overthrow the government but to support what she believed to be the lawful government. those claims have not yet been fully argued in court. another hearing is set for later this week. >> there is essentially argument that she was in an alternate reality. is that a reasonable defense? >> in my judgment it will not be persuasive. not only was it insurrection, but it also was violence in pursuit

jessica watkins is accused of helping plan the january 6th attack on the u.s. capitol.friday, a judge ruled she must stay in jail until her trial. she's pled not guilty. at the hearing, she disavowed the group, saying, quote, i'm canceling my oath keeper membership. i'm sorry for any inconvenience i've caused the court. i am not a criminally-minded person. i'm humbled and humiliated that i'm even here today. >>> well, prince harry is opening up like few have seen before. when we come back, what he says about leaving the uk and his position in the royal family. you're watching "cnn newsroom." we'll be right back. >>> los angeles police say lady gaga's two stolen dogs have now been returned unharmed, we're pleased to say. they were apparently turned over at a police station in los angeles two nights after they were taken in what was a brutal robbery. they still don't know who took them or who attacked the singer's dog walker on wednesday. that's where assailants shot the dog walker and drove away with the french bulldogs. a source close to the singer says the dog walker i

one particular instance an individual, the oathkeepers, thomas caldwell and jessica watkins allegedly getting a boat, bringing weapons by boat into washington d.c. the key in all of this, ana, and what we keep seeing in some of these court records when we look at some of the organized efforts in all of this, is that there was messaging from the former president that these groups of people were looking at, reading, watching, waiting for signals on when to act. as we see in a lot of terrorist groups, as we see in extremism, you know, we look deeper into these groups, they are following something, some belief. that is what is starting to come across. that is certainly something that has the fbi very concerned as we go in the months and probably even years ahead in trying to combat some of what has happened here. it is very troubling and obviously the organization now that the fbi is focusing on and a great deal to see how organized was this, the money, the groups, that is a big part of the investigation. >> and of course social media plays such a huge role here. we're starting to see com

but one case that is moving forward, that's the case against jessica watkins.ged ringleader of the oath keepers conspiracy to attack the capitol. a federal judge ruled yesterday she's too dangerous to release and will stay in jail before her trial. her efforts to recruit and train other militants were a key part of that decision. and watkins even spoke out yesterday for the first time since her arrest. she disavowed the oath keepers and said she was going to disband her own malitia that she runs in ohio. also i want to show you some horrifying new body cam footage that we got this week. this is thomas webster, who you're going to see on your screen. he's a retired new york city police officer, and this is him allegedly attacking police at the capitol with a metal pole. at one point he tackled another officer to the ground and tried to rip away his helmet. victor and christi, this is the most shocking part of this video. webster, who you see on the screen, he used to protect new york city hall during his career at the nypd, guys. >> wow. and i know that these ca

jessica watkins is one of nine oath keepers, members of the far right militia charged with conspiracyconnection with the attack on the capitol. cnn's whitney wild has been looking to these details. what is she claiming here through her lawyer? >> reporter: through her lawyer she's basically trying to get out of custody. what her defense attorney is doing, trying to tell the judge she was not there to cause problems. she was not there to cause violence. so legitimate, in fact, was part of the security apparatus for the day. in fact meeting with secret service agents. here's a clip from her filing here in which she says on january 5th and 6th she was again preparing for security apparatus of the day. not present as an insurrectionist but to provide security to the speakers at the rally, to provide escort for legislators and others to march to the capitol. this statement goes on to say that that was at the direction by the then president and was also there to safely escort protesters away from the capitol and to their vehicles and cars at the conclusion of the protest. the critical part

you said, one of the people that did have a court appearance today was a woman by the name of jessica watkins course, she is alleged to have been one of the leaders in this conspiracy with the oath keepers. also there's a new video that came out showing some of the oath keepers. officials say they are the oath keepers lined up in formation inside the capitol. a big focus, obviously, for investigators is the conspiracy charges and the oath keepers and also keep in mind, wolf, we've not even yet seen all the video that authorities and the fbi have been reviewing. a lot of the body-worn camera video, some of them more frightening incidents between police and a lot of the rioters. that has yet to be made public. we've seen snippets of it in court documents. the fbi is continuing to review those videos, still looking to identify dozens of suspects in connection with the insurrection. so, a lot still going on here, wolf, as we're going to see on a daily basis, a lot of these cases winding their way through the court. >> shimon, stand by. the president, president biden moments ago left the white hou

another member of the same group is jessica watkins, on the right side of your screen here by the fbi the capitol. according to her attorney, she was there to provide security to the speakers at the president's rally and escort for the legislators and others to march to the capital as directed by then president. she was given a vip pass to the rally. she met with secret service agents. now the secret service denies it employed any private citizen to provide security. this woman's attorney draws a line from the president's rally to the very group the justice department alleges did knowingly combine, conspire, con fed rate and agree with each other to corruptly obstruct, influence and impede congresses' certification of the electoral college vote. the same group of which another member conversing on facebook about whether or not to bring firearms that day said okay, we're not either. we have a heavy quick response force ten minutes out though. more arrests were made, we're learning how much of an influence militias had on the attack at the capitol. today at the very scene of that attack

prosecutors added that oath keepers member jessica watkins who was at the capitol on 6 january wrote in a text message to an associate back in november, quote, if trump asks me to come, i will. as we mentioned, trump's defense lawyers bruce castor and david shoen start their defense in earnest tomorrow. earlier this evening mr. schoen gave us what that might take. >> how long will it take tomorrow? >> maybe three hours or so. >> when do you think this could all be over? >> you know, they were shooting for tuesday night but i think now it's moving much more quickly, so i think that -- i would think it could be over saturday. >> both defense attorneys were widely criticized, as you saw, for their performance on tuesday, and their client was reported to be unhappy. tonight the two lawyers met with three members of the jury. republican senators cruz, graham and lee, to talk about strategy for tomorrow's presentation. their client hasn't been seen much since he left office though cameras did catch him on the golf course in florida today. tonight "the new york times" has new reporting on t

in the new court filing oath keepers member jessica watkins claims she was given a vip pass to the pro-trumpthat preceded the riot on january 6th and that she met with secret service agents and provided security for legislators that day. in response to this the u.s. secret service denied private citizens were working with them to provide security on january 6th. and i'm joined now by democratic congresswoman debbie dingell of michigan. nice to see you. thanks for coming on. you have been very vocal about the capitol riot and how misinformation has played into it. what is your reaction to this oath keeper's claim she was working with secret service allegedly leading up to the insurrection? >> well, clearly i don't have all the information, and it's not even clear which side -- i hate to say this word "sides," but there were people who came to prevent certification from happening and to do harm. so i want to have more facts, but i think it's further evidence that there was more organized effort to what happened at the capitol on january 6th, which is why we need to understand, why we need to g

some of the more interesting high profile charges, jessica watkins from ohio.ilitary veteran. the government that she was part of a group called the oath keepers militia that had joined one other people in communicating with each other once they were inside the building. she had written in social media that she was waiting for directions from president trump, saying unless the potus himself activates us, it is not legit. that he has the right to activate units. if trump asks me to come, i will. you might remember some of the house managers quoted from that case. then another one that was filed last week, conspiracy charges against five people accused of associating with the proud boys who the prosecutors say played a leading role in some of the key moments. riot, breaking through the outer police perimeter, getting into the capitol, assaulting police officers, three of these folks are from kansas city in the most recent charming. two from tucson. they're not charged with actually being members of the proud boys but one of the women in the group said that she wa

several of these members of the oathkeepers who have now been charged, including this woman, jessica watkinsis part of this group. in a filing, her lawyer contends, quote, miss watkins was present not as an insurrectionist, but to provide security to the speakers at the rally, to provide escort for the legislator and others to march to the capitol, as directed by the then president and to safely escort protesters away from the capitol to their vehicles and cars at the conclusion of the protest. she was given a vip pass to the rally. she met with secret service agents. she was within 50 feet of the stage during the rally to provide security for the speakers and at the time the capitol was breached, she was still on site of the initial rally, where she had provided security. there's a lot of words there. the key ones, she met with secret service agents. she was given a vip pass. if all of that is true, what questions does that raise for you, andy? >> well, john, you know, defense attorneys have a tendency to say a lot of things in the prelude of an investigation. whether they can prove or subs

the group coordinated with three other members of the militia, thomas caldwell, jessica watkins, and donovan crowell, all of whom were charged last month. the indictment brings the total number of oath keepers charged to nine and represents the most significant effort by the justice department yet to prove that far-right extremists worked together ahead of the january 6th insurrection. and then on the heels of those indictments, "the washington post" is now reporting that the united states is investigating whether high-profile right-wing figures, including trump ally roger stone and conspiracy theorist alex jones may have played a role in the capitol hill attack. we're going to follow much more on the story as it develops and bring it to you throughout the next two hours. >>> ahead, everybody, more on the problems texans are facing in the wake of the winter blast that's paralyzed much of the state since earlier this week. a houston homeowner joins me to share her personal story. we'll be right back. o share her personal story we'll be right back. (dad vo) i saw them out of the corner

jessica watkins, an army veteran from ohio and avowed member of the far right militia group oath keepers was bothing about her role there on the 6th. according to federal court documents she posted online, "we stormed the capitol today, tear gassed, the whole nine, pushed our way into the rotunda. made into it the senate even." white supremacists boasting a 43 seen smashing a window at the capitol took a, quote, victory smoke inside that building. the fbi notes he is self-identified as a former marine as well as a member of the proud boys. or police officers from rocking mount, virginia, who proudly posted this selfie from inside the capitol. these are police officers documenting their own crimes on the day of the insurrection. we're showing it to you unedited because you should see the message they're giving everyone. this is an exhibit in court now. they're facing five federal counts. they have also now since all that been fired. this is a complex story, as i mentioned at the top. there are heroic capitol hill police officers as well, many we saw. they protected lawmakers. they risked

if that was a big day for jessica watkins from ohio, so was her day in court, asking to be set free whilefirmed 27 current or former members of the military are facing charges. an army veteran, watkins is accused of conspiracy, obstructioning an official proceeding, destroying property and more. she says she believed she was answering the call of president trump and providing security for vips. the main argument from her lawyer, she fell prey to the false and inflammatory claims of the former president, his supporters and the right wing media. however misguided, her intentions were not in any way related to an intention to overthrow the government but to support what she believed to be the lawful government. those claims have not yet been fully argued in court. another hearing is set for later this week. >> they're essentially arguing she was in an alternate reality. is that a reasonable defense? >> in my judgment, it will not be persuasive. not only was it insurrection, but it also was violence in pursuit of a political objective which is domestic terrorism. >> reporter: others are showi

jessica watkins who is one of the oath keepers who was arrested, her defense was, you know, is basically -- the conspiracy that i was following led me to there and i didn't want to become a terrorist that day. that's not good optics for a movement if you are trying to grow in the aftermath of what you thought was the start of a civil war. they are trying to thread some needles here, stephanie. it's really hard. >> it's really hard to thread the needles, since so many of the conspiracy theories didn't prove to be true are we seeing the extremism decrease in any way at least since former president trump is no longer in the white house? >> yeah, it's morphing a little bit and it's going into different circles. qanon conspiracy theories are not going away, they're just not called qanon anymore. they use all the standard talking points about the deep state and about, you know, human trafficking being in every part of our lives run by the clintons and all that stuff, but it's not called qanon, it's just in a text message from a friend they're sending out trying to get viral. so these things wi

department of justice filed today charges against a leader of the so-called oath keepers named jessica watkins who said -- and the quote is as the inauguration grew near watkins indicated she was awaiting direction from president trump. her concern about taking action without his backing was evident on november 9th, 2020 text in which she stated i'm concerned this is an elaborate trap unless the potus himself activates us it's not legit. the potus has the right took the vait units too. if trump asked me to come i will. otherwise, i can't trust it. there were certainly a lot of people who felt the president was talking directly to them. >> absolutely. and you wonder why there was all this video. these people were taking video of themselves and bragging about it and posting social media items about what they had done. and the reason is is because they thought they had permission. they thought they had direction. they thought they had been given orders by the president of the united states. that's why they thought they were immune from consequences. and that's basically one of the reasons why the

wanting to possibly conduct citizens arrests at the capitol and in one case, this defendant, jessica watkins, had allegedly talked about trying to put together some kind of paramilitary training type program that would include war games, riot control, search and rescue operations, just this chilling level of detail in the planning that went into this. of course, watkins is also the defendant that prosecutors say discussed her incitement by president trump. they wrote in court documents that as the inauguration grew nearer, watkins indicated she was awaiting direction from president trump. her concern about taking action without his backing was evident in a november 9th text. she stated i'm concerned this is an elaborate trap unless the president himself activates us. it's not legitimate. so chilling court records. those details also, this level of information we're hearing about the direction that they thought they were taking from the president, this finding its way not only into court records but front of muind as this secod impeachment trial continues. >> josh campbell, thank you for that

said as the inauguration grew near, jessica watkins indicated she was awaiting direction from presidentf insurrection who said specifically he told me what to do. from a legal perspective, constitutional perspective, what is the significance of that? >> i think it goes pretty directly to the argument that the president did incite these armed rioters. there is another video that the managers played yesterday of one of the president's tweets being read out over a bull horn, a tweet about vice president pence not coming through for trump, not doing what trump had asked him to do which he had no power to do and that is read out over a bull horn in the middle of the rioters where they are looking for pence. the managers have made to my mind the factual case, guys, connecting former trump to what happened on january 6th. i think the problem is that there are a sufficient number of senators for whom none of the fact are going to matter. they're using this constitutional occasion that is not a convincing one as a way of just ducking and avoiding having to weigh in on the facts and avoiding of w

thomas edward caldwell donovan ray croll and jessica marie watkins 3 militia members were also charged for their role in the attack they just cus trapping us inside the underground tunnels the indictment called social media chatter with caldwell quote all members are in the tunnel under capital seal them in turn on gas all legislators are down in the tunnels 3 floors down do like we had to do when i was in the corps and start tearing out floors go from top to bottom and quote never did any of us imagine that we are colleagues would face mortal peril by a mob riled up by the president of the united states the leader of the free world but we did it all because donald trump could not accept the election defeat trump chose himself above the people above our institutions above our democracy above all of you. you know we've heard from a spouse for years now this is america 1st policy but his true north star isn't america's well being it's not country 1st like our dear departed colleague john mccain no he is directive is trumped 1st no matter the cost no matter the threat to our democracy but

and jessica marie watkins says beforehand, trump wants all able-bodies patriots to come. if trump activates the insurrection act, i would hate to miss it. would you submit those things into the record? >> i would certainly submit them into the record. i would even be more interested if the fbi in the course of its investigation has arrested someone who said, yeah, we talked to donald trump or we talked to somebody involved in his campaign or the white house, and they told us if things didn't go right, we had to storm the building. that's the sort of direct, live witness evidence that would actually change the minds of some of the republican senators. >> it was interesting to hear liz cheney, margaret, talk about potential criminal liability for the former president of the united states. i want to play that one more time so people can see it and listen to exactly how she phrases it. >> there will be a massive criminal investigation of everything that happened on january 6th and in the days before. people will want to know exactly what the president was doing. they will wan

another one who's got a lot of attention, jessica marie watkins said, i don't underestimate the resolvethe deep state. biden may still be our president. if he is, our way of life as we know it is over. our republic is over. then it is our duty as americans to fight, kill, and die for our rights. that's what she said before the insurrection, and then they attempted to carry that out. now, what we will hear today, as we are told from the trump defense, is that you know what, both sides of the aisle, politicians often use heated rhetoric. you know, they will use this, we believe, sound bite from chuck schumer to say, you know, it's all even. so listen to this from senator schumer. >> i want to tell you, gorsuch. i want to tell you, kavanaugh, you have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price! you won't know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions. >> is that the same rhetoric? do you hear that the same way? and do you wish that senator schumer hadn't said something like that, used incendiary rhetoric like that? >> i've been in election office now for two years. a

here's another one from jessica marie watkins. d.c., trump wants all able-bodied patriots to come. if trump activates the insurrection act, i would hate to miss it. she's sending out an email to all of her friends and associates that they need to immediately get to washington, d.c. so do you think that this -- they will be able to accomplish what they need to accomplish without witnesses and in the space of a week? >> yes, alisyn. i don't think either side really needs witnesses to accomplish their goals here. unlike the first impeachment, as you just noted, there is ample video evidence that the house managers need to tell the story. and their star witness is donald trump. and they have a number of words and speeches and tweets that they can lay out to make their case on how they participated in inciting this insurrection and as you just noted, there are people that are responding and there is video of that, as well. and the fact that he has chosen not to testify in person only allows them to make this case without any rebuttal on his part. as far as the defense, remember, that th

"potus has the right to activate units too," jessica watkins wrote on november 9 according to court papers"if trump asks me to come, i will." tim in tucson, arizona. caller: i keep thinking back to the testimony that congress -- that lawyer michael cohen. he said his boss, mr. trump, had an uncanny knack for making it known what he wanted without ever saying it. one of the committee members just asked him point-blank, did trump tell you to write that check? he said it is hard to explain. trump never comes right out and tells you to do anything. but he has some charisma, some code. host: how does that relate to january 6? caller: i wish the house managers had hit on that more. the parsing of words like fight does not necessarily mean violence and things like that. it won't cut it with whether or not trump communicated exactly what he wanted. this guy testified. he was hard-pressed to give a quote. a verbatim -- sort of like a jailhouse circumspection, if you will. he just knew exactly how to let it be known what he wanted without using the words. host: alexandria, virginia. independently. -

people like jessica watkins believed they were following the orders of trump and they tried to blunt the defense saying that at the time he was being held accountable for those very words. >> people have to be held accountable including the president. >> he refused to adequately prepare the u.s. capitol for the possibility of violence and left it nearly defenseless. his remarks after the travesty was disgraceful. >> his refusal to accept the election results they have threaten today burn down our democracy. >> i stood by my father's side at age 12 on the floor of the house chamber as we both took the oath of office. an oath to support and defend the constitution of the united states. it's clear to me that president trump abandoned this oath. >> they went back to show that trump knew that his words matters, that he knew his supporters would listen. that he told people to punch protestors and he would pay their legal bills, and that if he runs again and loses this could all happen again. >> indeed. thank you for that recitation. i service for everyone that doesn't have the luxury of be

prosecutors say, jessica watkins, one of caldwell's alleged co-conspirators, also, a military veteranher the nuclear football was at risk when rioters got within 100 feet of former vice president mike pence. joining me now, nbc news terrorism analyst and contributor. he is also author of "the plot to betray america, how team trump embraced our enemies, compromised our security, and how we can fix it" also with us, former assistant secretary at the department of homeland security. two of the best experts on this subject matter. malcolm, let's begin with you. the video of mike pence being shuffled out of the senate chamber. you see the military officer there, hurrying behind him just a few feet away with the nuclear football. what is going through your mind, as a security expert, watching that moment? >> you know, i was quite shocked, when i saw that he had the football was -- was present. i knew -- you know, you know it has to be near him. he is the ultimate-command authority. he is the ultimate commander in chief, if president trump had been incapacitated, then he would have to have t

thomas edward caldwell, jessica marie watkins three militia members were also charged with their roleattack. trapping us inside the underground tonsils, the indictment quotes socialdi media shadow with all members are in the tunnel under the capitol, deal them in, turn on gas. all legislators are down in the tunnels three floors down. do like we had to do in the core and start tearing out floors, go from top to bottom". never did any of us imagine that we or our colleagues would face mortal peril by a mob riled up by the president of the united states. the leader of the free world. but we did. all because donald trump could not accept his election defeat. trump shows himself above the people, above our institutions, above our democracy, above all of you. you know we have heard trump espouse for years now this america first policy. a but his true northstar is not america's well beating. it's notnt country first coward dear departed colleague john mccain, here is directive is trump first. no matter the cost, no matter the threat to our democracy. but each and every one of us in this roo

prepared to attack any member of congress they found ., edward caldwell , donovan ray kroll and jessica marie watkins, three militia members also charge for their role in the attack in a discussed trappings inside the underground tunnels . the indictment social media chatter with caldwell quote, all membersare in. seal them in . turn on gas. all legislators are down in the tunnel three floors down. do what we had to do when i was in the core and start tearing up floors and go from top to bottom . never did any of us imagine that we or our colleagues would face mortal peril by a mob riled up by the president of the united states. the leader of the free world. but we did. all because donald trump could not accept election defeat. trump chose himself above the people, of our institutions, of our democracy, above all of you. you know, we've heard trump a spouse for years now this america first policy . but his true north star isn't america's well-being. it's not country first like our dear departed colleague john mccain . his directive is trump first. no matter the cost, no matter the threat to ourdemocr

thomas edward caldwell, donovan ray, jessica marie watkins, three militia members, were also charged for their role in the attack. they discussed trapping us inside the underground tunnels. the social media chatter, "all members are in the tunnel under capitol. seal them in. turn on gas. all legislators are down in the tunnel's floors down. do what i did when i was in the corps, tara floors, from top to bottom." never did any of us imagine that we or our colleagues would face mortal peril by a mob riled up by the president of the united states. the leader of the free world. but we did. all because donald trump could not accept the election deceit. trump chose himself above the people, about their institutions, above our democracy, above all of you. you know, we have heard trump a spouse for years now this america first policy. but his true northstar isn't america's well-being. it's not country first, like our dear departed colleague, john mccain. no, it is trump first. no matter the cost, no matter the threat to our democracy. but each and every one of us in this room must agree on o