Richmond: State of Emergency in Face of "Militias" and Hate Groups Gathering

The Trump/Pence regime and Republicans have repeated sought to suppress information on the threat posed by self-style "militias" and white nationalist and white supremacy groups - not coincidentally,  pillars of the GOP base in the age of Trump.  Not surprisingly these groups have a large overlap of membership with "gun rights" groups.  With the memories of August 12, 2017, in Charlottesville and the mass shooting in Virginia Beach last year, the vast majority of Virginians want gun control legislation enacted this session of the Virginia General Assembly.  Indeed, Virginia voters elected a Democrat majority in no small part because of Republican obstruction of the will of the majority of Virginians.   Stated another way, the 2019 Virginia election saw the majority of Virginians at last say "no more" to Republicans putting the rights and wants of small minorities of extremists over the rights of the majority.  Now, with much desired gun legislation before the legislature, some of the same elements that brought mayhem and murder to Charlollesville, appear poised to descend on Richmond and apparently "storm" the Virginia Capitol to frighten legislators into not passing needed gun control laws. Virginia's Governor has vowed not to allow these elements to bring violence to the streets of Richmond or the Capitol grounds. The Washington Post reports on Gov. Northam's actions and the threat posed by hate groups and out of state "militias."  Here are story excerpts:

RICHMOND — Gov. Ralph Northam is declaring a state of emergency and temporarily banning weapons from the Capitol grounds in advance of a gun-rights rally planned for Monday, citing “threats of armed confrontation and assault on our Capitol.”

Monday is the state’s traditional citizen lobbying day, and gun-rights groups are organizing a large demonstration to oppose several far-reaching bills being advanced by the Virginia General Assembly’s new Democratic majority.

The rally has drawn interest from militias and extremist groups across the country, raising security concerns in Richmond.

Northam asked that nonessential state employees not come to work Monday, a state holiday on which legislative staffers would normally be on duty since the legislature is in session.

The governor — flanked by Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney (D), state, capitol and city police leaders, and state Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Brian Moran — began his announcement by stating his belief in the right to debate, assemble and bear arms.

But he said authorities had “received credible intelligence,” some gathered via “dark web channels used by white nationalists outside Virginia,” about groups with “malicious plans” such as “storming our Capitol” and “weaponizing drones” over Capitol Square.

“This includes out-of state militias and hate groups from across the country,” Northam said. “They’re not coming to peacefully protest. They’re coming to intimidate and cause harm.” He said information circulating on the Internet is being “fueled by misinformation and conspiracy theories.”

The governor took pains to distinguish between the extremists he said were latching onto the planned rally and the law-abiding gun-rights activists who for years have “peacefully assembled” at the Capitol. “No one wants another incident like the one we saw in Charlottesville in 2017,” said Northam, referring to the deadly violence that followed a “Unite the Right” rally that centered on opposition to removing a Confederate statue in the university town. “We will not allow mayhem and violence to happen here.” Monday’s rally is being organized by the Virginia Citizens Defense League, one of many grass-roots groups that turn out every year for the citizen lobbying day. The organization expects a much larger crowd this year, with the legislature advancing measures that would require background checks on all firearms purchases, allow law enforcement to temporarily remove guns from individuals deemed a risk to themselves or others, let localities ban weapons from certain events and government buildings, and cap handgun purchases at one per month.

Gun control became a dominant issue in the 2019 elections in Virginia, following a deadly mass shooting in a Virginia Beach and a decision by the then-GOP-controlled legislature to swiftly adjourn a special session Northam called to address gun legislation in the aftermath.

In recent weeks, VCDL President Philip Van Cleave has encouraged supporters to leave intimidating long guns — including assault-style rifles such as the AR-15 — at home. He has welcomed out-of-state militias but warned them not to get into confrontations with gun-control activists. And he has tried to keep other incendiary issues out of his event.

“This is not about [Confederate] flags, statues, history, etc. Just guns,” he wrote in a statement to supporters.

One can only hope that such threats convince legislators to pass even more stringent gun control laws than now contemplated, including a ban on assault weapons  and stiffer penalties for out of state actors who violate Virginia's laws.  Having been at the Virginia Capitol - a beautiful and historic building designed by Thomas Jefferson - over the weekend, no one who is not up to no good should ever want to bring a gun onto the Capitol grounds much less into the Capitol.