The rule of law and peaceful of transfer of power were on the line in the Oath Keepers trial, CNN national security analyst Juliette Kayyem noted on Tuesday – and the guilty verdicts sent a message.
“This is a really great day for the United States, for the rule of law, for the peaceful transfer of power and making sure that that is protected because that is essentially what was on trial,” she said.
Kayyem added, “But the overall charge against, in particular, Stewart Rhodes, is monumental because it is saying to the world that this was, one word, conspiracy, more than one. It is not a bunch of guys vacationing and deciding to get a little bit disruptive. It was planned before, during, and possibly after to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power.”
Kayyem also highlighted how the verdicts may impact other cases moving forward, sending a message to groups and individuals that participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, US Capitol attack — potentially leading some to take pleas.
“We have to figure out exactly what each count relates to in terms of the guilty verdict. So it is not just a statement to those defendants, it’s a statement to potentially future defendants. This is how these cases, this is how violent organizations die, which is a good thing. They get disrupted at the top. They turn on each other, which is what we saw in this case. They have no trust amongst each other, and they know that they have now been exposed.”
Kayyem said that the result is that others facing similar charges will get nervous. “And they will take more pleas or they will take pleas that are being offered by the Department of Justice.”
