Former President Donald Trump has officially endorsed a plan, created by a man who has self-identified with the Oath Keeper militia, that aims to have Trump supporters consolidate control of the Republican Party.
The plan, known as the “precinct strategy,” has been repeatedly promoted on Steve Bannon’s popular podcast. As ProPublica detailed last year, it has already inspired thousands of people to fill positions at the lowest rung of the party ladder. Though these positions are low-profile and often vacant, they hold critical powers: They help elect higher-ranking party officers, influence which candidates appear on the ballot, turn out voters on Election Day and even staff the polling precincts where people vote and the election boards that certify the results.
“Just heard about an incredible effort underway that will strengthen the Republican Party,” Trump said Sunday in a statement emailed to his supporters. “If members of our Great movement start getting involved (that means YOU becoming a precinct committeeman for your voting precinct), we can take back our great Country from the ground up.”
Trump’s email named Dan Schultz, an Arizona lawyer and local party official who first developed the precinct strategy more than a decade ago. Schultz spent years trying to promote his plan and recruit precinct officers. In 2014, he posted a callout to an internal forum for the Oath Keepers militia group, according to hacked records obtained by ProPublica.
“Why don’t you all join me and the other Oath Keepers who are ‘inside’ the Party already,” Schultz wrote under a screen name. “If we conservatives were to do that, we’d OWN the Party.”
Federal prosecutors in January charged the leader of the Oath Keepers and 10 of its other members with seditious conspiracy in last year’s attack on the U.S. Capitol. One of them pleaded guilty, as have several members of the group in related cases who are cooperating with the investigation. The group’s leader, Stewart Rhodes, pleaded not guilty.
There is no indication that Schultz had any involvement in the Capitol riot.
Schultz told ProPublica he never became a formal member of the Oath Keepers organization. “I have taken oaths to support and defend the Constitution as a West Point cadet, as a commissioned U.S. Army officer and as a practicing attorney,” Schultz said in a text message. “Those oaths do not have expiration dates, by my way of thinking, and I have kept my oaths. In that sense, I am an ‘oath keeper.’”
According to experts on extremist groups, the Oath Keepers recruit military and law enforcement veterans using the idea that their oath to defend the Constitution never expired. The group then urges people to resist what they say are impending orders to take away Americans’ guns or create concentration camps.
“I don’t ever want to be pulling the trigger on an AR-15 in my neighborhood,” Schultz said in a 2015 conference call with fellow organizers, referring to the semi-automatic rifle. “Oath Keepers, I love them for instilling the oath. But what they need to do also, I think, is spread the message that hey, we can do stuff politically so we never get to the cartridge box.”
In more recent interviews on right-wing podcasts and internet talk shows, Schultz has repeatedly described his precinct strategy as a last alternative to violence.
“It’s not going to be peaceful the next go-round, perhaps,” Schultz said in a June interview with the pro-Trump personality David Clements. “But it ought to be, and the way to ensure that it will be is we’ve got to get enough of these good decent Americans to take over one of the two major political parties.”
It was not clear whether Trump or his aides were aware that Schultz has self-identified with the Oath Keepers. Trump’s spokesperson, Liz Harrington, did not respond to requests for comment.
Schultz has spent months trying to get his idea in front of Trump. Steve Stern, a fellow movement organizer, told ProPublica that he met a former Trump administration official for lunch at Mar-a-Lago, the ex-president’s private club in Palm Beach, in December. While there, Stern said, he got a chance to briefly mention the project to Trump.
Then, last month, Schultz and Stern landed an interview on a talk show hosted by Mike Lindell, the MyPillow CEO who promotes conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. Lindell said he would discuss the plan with Trump personally. Schultz and Stern followed up with a conference call with Harrington and Bannon, according to Stern. Harrington previously worked at Bannon’s “War Room” website.
“I know the president’s very jacked up about it,” Bannon said on his podcast, speaking with Schultz after Trump released the endorsement. “Help MAGA, help the America First movement, right? Help the deplorables, help President Trump, help yourself, your country, community, your kids, grandkids, all of it. Put your shoulder to the wheel.”
Bannon, who led Trump’s 2016 campaign, originally lifted the precinct strategy to prominence in a podcast interview with Schultz last year. After the episode aired, thousands of people answered Bannon’s call to become precinct officers in pivotal swing states, according to data compiled by ProPublica from county records and interviews with local party officials.
As of last August, GOP leaders in 41 counties reported an unusual increase in sign-ups since Bannon’s first interview with Schultz, adding a total of more than 8,500 new precinct officers. The trend appears to have continued since then. New precinct officers started using their powers to remove or censure Republican leaders who contradicted Trump’s election lies and to recruit people who believe the election was stolen into positions as poll watchers and poll workers.
Bannon received a last-minute pardon from Trump after the former adviser was charged with financial fraud. He has pleaded not guilty to contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack. Bannon’s spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.
In addition to Bannon and Lindell, the precinct strategy has won support from pro-Trump figures such as former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who urged Trump to impose martial law, and lawyers Sidney Powell and Lin Wood, who led some of the lawsuits seeking to overturn the election results. Right-wing groups such as Turning Point Action, which organized buses to transport rallygoers on Jan. 6, also joined the effort to recruit precinct officers.
While Stern said he’s thrilled about Trump’s written statement endorsing the precinct strategy, he said he hopes to hear it from Trump’s own lips at an upcoming rally. Stern said he plans to be there with tables to sign more people up.
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Kyndra L Mulder says
Is there a problem with Republican’s educating people and signing them up to vote? I was a Precinct Leader once. It is called Democracy.
Deborah Coffey says
Donald Trump and his thugs are the same as Putin and his thugs. Neither will succeed, but the cost of their attempts will be bloody. My great grandchildren will need to find a new country. What a tragedy.
Mark says
Sounds like the first job for….DUH-Santis’ Election Police aka Keystone Cops.
some guy says
What’s the problem here?? That is EXACTLY how the far left progressives took over the D party.
ROBERT JAMES DATTILIO says
How about Trump and his cronies finding a new country. Don’t quit on America!
Bill C says
Hey Republicans, don’t forget Trump called Putin a “genius” and “savvy” for his invasion of Ukraine. You still want to follow him? Where do you stand, for democracy or totalitarianism?
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/02/23/trump-putin-ukraine-invasion-00010923
John Stove says
Nothing wrong as long as they dont fraudulently switch party affiliations for people (over 100 seniors in Miami had their party switched to “Republican” from Democrat) by a Republican operative.
Nothing wrong as long as the Republican in that position is not a traitor who will incite and support insurrection if they lose an election.
Nothing wrong as long as the Republican does not endorse or support a extremist white nationalist (KKK) movement.
Nothing wrong as long as the Republican doesnt think that the leader of a country invading another country and killing innocent civilians is a “genius”.
Nothing wrong as long as the Republican doesnt grift and steal millions of our hard earned taxes to fund their family and private enterprise.
The current Republican party is rotten and needs to be remade in the image of what they used to stand for not the Trump butt lickers,
Makeitso1701 says
I agree, send trump and his cult followers to Russia, since they love dictators like putin.
Just a thought says
These two statements are the reasons why this is a horrible idea:
“It’s not going to be peaceful the next go-round, perhaps,” Schultz said in a June interview with the pro-Trump personality David Clements. “But it ought to be, and the way to ensure that it will be is we’ve got to get enough of these good decent Americans to take over one of the two major political parties.”
“Though these positions are low-profile and often vacant, they hold critical powers: They help elect higher-ranking party officers, influence which candidates appear on the ballot, turn out voters on Election Day and even staff the polling precincts where people vote and the election boards that certify the results.”
There is never anything wrong with helping out a precinct or any other part of the election process, if that’s what you are there to do. If your sole purpose is to intimidate, threaten or harass a candidate, a party officer or a voter whom may not align exactly with your exact political ideology then you are not there to help. Then you are nothing but a goon.
joe says
Also this: At a fundraiser last night,
“Trump mused to donors that we should take our F-22 planes, “put the Chinese flag on them and bomb the shit out” out of Russia. “And then we say, China did it, we didn’t do, China did it, and then they start fighting with each other and we sit back and watch.”
How so many are fooled by this corrupt fool astounds me.
some guy says
Well he was/is correct on that assessment. Putin is a “genius” in getting his way. just look at where we are today. Russia is getting close to taking the Capital of Ukraine. the west sat buy doing NOTHING. our President said time and time again this was about to happen and did NOTHING like Putin foresaw. We here still import Russian oil much of Europe gets a large % of there energy needs from Russia. while they shut down there own energy production needs. So Europe did next to nothing before also. Yes Trump is a loud mouth ASS BUT he was a STRONG leader fo the U.S.A. and the “free world” unlike the guy we have today.
Bill Mann says
Shout it from the rooftops, DNC would never even think to corrupt election results……..
Bill Mann says
For what its worth responding to a closeminded sheeple, Trump said that about Putin long before this invasion, it was a statement describing a man, would it have been more appropriate to say Putin is just the opposite of Biden, relative to ‘genius’ and ‘savvy’, it would have been just as accurate by using gentler words
tulip says
It is uncanny how much Trump and Putin are alike. They care about nobody but themselves, are liars, vicious, cruel, vindictive, dictatorial, power and money hungry and will get what they want at anyone else’s expense. Every time I see what’s happening in Ukraine, I think that this could possibly be us in the not too distance future. Trump has personally said he will believe Putin over our leaders. What kind of president says that!!! If Trump and his cronies get into office, be aware of what the future will be. It will be Trump getting even with everyone who disagreed with him, I think the past 5 yrs is enough of that, and he will have learned some lessons from Putin’s war to use. He got friendly with North Korea and now they have missiles and weapons galore. Hmmm If you would like Trump’s cronies to get in office in 2022 and Trump to get re elected in 2024, then God help us all because we will be in desperate need of it and it will be too late.
Frederick says
More BS and propaganda from the people who spread BS of Trump Russian collusion year after year….. same people who are all for having to show a vaccination card to go into a restaurant but not an ID to vote, and are all for allowing people to break our laws and come into the country illegally.
marlee says
to L Mulder
You totally missed the point of the article.
C.J. says
FYI, a Voter ID card is required or other official state ID bearing your official signature, to be presented in this county and State, and in other states I have lived in. Additionally, your signature is again required and must be validated at sign-in at the Polls in order to receive a ballot, or along with your Mail-in ballot or your vote will not be counted. No Democratic position apposes this.
Additionally, when you register either as Democrat or Republican, or Independent, and you come to vote at the Polls, you will ONLY receive the respective slate of nominees for the party matching your party registration at a Primary. An Independent cannot vote at Primary elections. At the final election, any properly registered voter, irrespective of party or independent, can vote for ANY candidate on the ballot.
Do you vote??
john stove says
Republican re-writing history again…..
Do you even remember that it was Trump who withheld the congressionally approved $400 million in military aid to Ukraine because they would not agree to “find any dirt on Joe Biden”? ….and oh yeah he was impeached for it and there was no dirt.
Now in the Biden administration they quickly shared intelligence and warned of possible false flag operations by the Russians and once the invasion started they approved and DELIVERED MILITARY AID WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED!
Putin is a”Genius”?…..wow you set the bar so low….their economy is shattered, the rest of the world has sanctioned them, their troops are deserting and they are getting their asses kicked in Ukraine. Yes they may ultimately and sadly win with overwhelming fire power but you know what…they will never ever recover in the standing of the world as you cannot trust Putin.
Trump is tool and those who still worship him can send him “thoughts and prayers” cards when he is bankrupt and in prison for sedition and being an American traitor to his country.
Sherry says
@ C.J.. . . Great effort in laying out credible, factual information. Those of us who are educated, and open minded appreciate the reminder of what is required to register to vote.
Unfortunately “cult” members like fred and now some guy have been completely FOX brainwashed and are unable/unwilling to comprehend any kind of reasonable presentation of the actual facts. They have been indoctrinated into the alternative reality of conspiracy theories, lies, fear and hate. . . FACTS mean nothing to them!
Sherry says
@ John Stove. . . Excellent Comment!
Yes, those of us who have not been brainwashed by FOX absolutely remember trump “illegally” attempting to “Bribe” Ukrainian’s President Zelenskyy with 400 MILLION in military aid which had already been approved by Congress. trump asked Zelenskyy to dig up dirt on Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden and Hunter Biden BEFORE he would release that money. trump was IMPEACHED for those “illegal” actions! Then IMPEACHED again for instigating the “Violent Insurrection” of Jan. 6th!
Yet there are trump/FOX “CULT” members like fred and “some guy” who mindlessly continue to support trump’s horrific corruption, racism, xenophobia, sexism. . . et al. . . while blaming absolutely everything on President Biden. Despicable and Pathetic!!!
Alonzo says
O yeah, during the Gop gathering in Orlando recently, some of the members said that Biden, ordered the Rusdisn Troops to invade Ukraine. Then they call him a weak leader. If he ordered the Russian Troops to invade Ukrain, that makes me believe he is a very powerful man. The leader of USA, & Russia. Go Joe Go. Yall know those Repubs were lying.
David Schaefer says
Trump is a wasted human being who belongs with Putin . He has done nothing for this country but brainwash those Fox loving fools into believing everything that comes out of his big fat mouth.
Lynn Schmidt says
In San diego ca we don’t care WHAT TRUMP lied about.
He lied to act on getting people killed. Thanks to him MOST CHILDREN DIED IN UKRAINE DUE TO PUTIN BOMBING MOTHERS AND CHILDREN. CRAZY WORLD LEADERSHIP I SAY. 👏