John,

“High potential for individuals to incite civil unrest.”

That was a threat assessment issued by government law enforcement analysts weeks before the January 6th insurrection. Despite this direct warning of possible violence, federal agencies failed to adequately respond to the threat.

CREW recently obtained government records documenting a history of violence at MAGA marches in the months leading up to January 6th, as well as warning signs pointing toward the possibility of additional violence. One threat assessment outlined points where rally participants planned to meet before heading to Washington, D.C. and identified many posts on Parler explicitly calling for violence.

These documents were sent to officials at the DOJ, DHS, FBI and the Senate. However, these and other agencies failed to adequately prepare and take the threat of violence seriously.

These documents and their distribution add to the evidence that federal agencies and elected officials were aware of potential violence, but still failed to protect our democracy.

Following the Jan. 6 attack, CREW has worked tirelessly to hold the guilty parties accountable, shed light on the betrayal of democratic institutions and call on the public and elected officials to ensure that the country never faces a similar threat. Now more than ever, our accountability and transparency work is vital to safeguard against threats to democracy.

If you’re able, please consider donating to support CREW’s work—we couldn’t do this critical transparency and accountability work without support from people like you.

Thank you,

Noah Bookbinder
President, CREW

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