When Mr. Rodriguez finally left the Capitol grounds, prosecutors say, he sent a text message to a group chat he had created called Patriots 45 MAGA Gang, showing a gallows with the Capitol in the background.
The text of the message read, “No Democrats found unfortunately.”“These people are zealots,” Mr. Fanone, who attended the hearing, said afterward.
He “deeply respected and idolized Trump,” the lawyers wrote, adding, “He saw the former president as the father he wished he had.”But Mr. Rodriguez did little to help his own cause in the courtroom.
She said she was particularly confounded by one thing Mr. Rodriguez had just said — that he had armed himself in anticipation of a fight with law enforcement, to participate in a demonstration intended to safeguard the police under a “Blue Lives Matter” banner.
“Today was not the best day to say you had to be armed and ready because police don’t always do the right thing,” she said, as one of his lawyers slumped in her seat.
Persons:
Mr, Rodriguez, “, Fanone, ” Mr, Trump, ”, Judge Jackson, don’t
Organizations:
Capitol, Patriots, Trump