Top members of the Oath Keepers now facing seditious conspiracy charges chatted for days about providing security for some of the highest-profile figures associated with Donald Trump’s effort to overturn the election, according to a newly released trove of text messages.
Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and top allies like Florida Oath Keeper Kelly Meggs discussed plans to provide security for figures like Roger Stone, Alex Jones, Ali Alexander and Michael Flynn on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6, describing potential partnerships with other groups and security details.
While several members of the group now facing charges notably flanked Stone on Jan. 5 — including Joshua James, who has since pleaded guilty to seditious conspiracy — the extent of the Oath Keepers’ work for other figures has been murky. For example, Alexander indicated in a recent statement that the Oath Keepers never ended up providing security for him because his own Jan. 6 event was canceled amid the chaos on Capitol grounds.
But the group’s conversations reveal an easy relationship among several of the groups and entities now under scrutiny by federal prosecutors and the Jan. 6 select committee. In one exchange, Meggs — identified by his handle “Gator 1” — indicates he attempted to call Enrique Tarrio, the leader of the Proud Boys, after hearing reports he had been arrested on Jan. 4, 2021.