# Final Report of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol/Chapter 6/Section 6.7

Layout 2
​6.7 WHITE NATIONALISTS: “THE CAPITOL SIEGE WAS FUCKING AWESOME…”
Nick Fuentes is an online provocateur who leads a white nationalist movement known as "America First," or the "Groypers." Fuentes immediately responded to President Trump's "be wild" tweet. On December 19, 2020, ​Fuentes wrote on Twitter: "I will return to Washington DC to rally for President Trump on January 6th!" Fuentes and his Groypers did return to Washington, DC for the joint session. As the attack was underway, Fuentes incited followers from his perch immediately outside of the U.S. Capitol. Some of his followers joined the attack inside, with one even sitting in Vice President Pence's seat on the Senate dais.
Fuentes and a fellow Groyper leader, Patrick Casey, rose to prominence in 2017 after rallying at the Charlottesville "Unite the Right" event. For years, the Groypers have repeatedly promoted white supremacist and Christian nationalist beliefs, often cloaked in wink-and-nod humor, puns, or religion, and they regularly gin up public opposition to other right-wing organizations or politicians whom they deem insufficiently conservative.
Fuentes was a key voice for "Stop the Steal" conspiracy theories leading up to January 6th. He spent 2 months leading rallies in State capitals across the country, spreading the Big Lie and livestreaming coded calls to violence. He also used his livestream to raise significant funds between November 2020 and January 2021.
On November 9, 2020, Fuentes promised, "GROYPERS ARE GOING TO STOP THIS COUP!" Two days later, Fuentes organized a "Stop the Steal" rally at the Michigan State Capitol. He told the crowd that they should be "more feral" in their tactics to overturn the election, suggesting that they target lawmakers in their homes. On November 14th, Fuentes rallied a crowd of his followers at the Million MAGA March in Washington, DC, pushing "Stop the Steal" conspiracies, calling for President Trump to rule for life, and exhorting his followers to "storm every State capitol until January 20, 2021, until President Trump is inaugurated for 4 more years."
As discussed above, Fuentes was a prominent figure at the "Stop the Steal" rally in Atlanta, Georgia, in November 2020. He promoted election conspiracies, criticized the Republican Party, joked about the Holocaust, and denounced former Vice President Biden as illegitimate. Fuentes also suggested his followers intimidate politicians in their homes.
On December 12th, Fuentes again rallied a crowd of supporters at the "Stop the Steal" events in Washington, DC, calling for the destruction of the Republican Party because it had failed to overturn the election. As others spoke at the Jericho March rally, Fuentes headlined a "Stop the Steal" protest just a few blocks away.
On January 4th, Fuentes suggested that his followers kill State legislators who don't support efforts to overturn the 2020 election. As discussed in Chapter 2, President Trump and his surrogates were pressuring State legislators at the time to do just that. Fuentes complained that his side "had ​no leverage." Fuentes then asked: "What can you and I do to a state legislator, besides kill them?" He then quickly added: "Although we should not do that. I am not advising that, but I mean, what else can you do, right?
On January 5th, Casey advertised the marches in Washington, DC on his Telegram channel and provided repeated updates on the logistics of getting into the city. Casey also spoke to his followers about the next day's rally on a livestream on DLive. As discussed in Chapter 8, the Groypers clearly played a role in the January 6th attack. They even planted their flag in the inner chambers of the U.S. Capitol. Fuentes crowed about the attack the day after, tweeting: "The Capitol Siege was fucking awesome and I'm not going to pretend it wasn't." In another tweet on January 7th, Fuentes wrote: "For a brief time yesterday the US Capital [sic] was once again occupied by The American People, before the regime wrested back control."
Despite his boasts on Twitter, Fuentes exercised his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination and refused to provide information about his organizing activities to the Select Committee.