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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Graig Graziosi

‘Stop the steal’ organiser pushes blame onto far-right allies during Jan 6 testimony, transcript reveals

screengrab/YouTube/ABC News, @JasonSCampbell/Twitter

The organizer of the rally that preceded the Capitol riot reportedly threw his MAGA-world peer Charlie Kirk to the wolves during a meeting with the House Select Committee investigating the Capitol riot.

Ali Alexander, who organised "Stop the Steal," told the House Select Committee during a closed-door deposition last year that right-wing media figure and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was among those at fault for the riot.

Mr Alexander assured the committee he was innocent of wrongdoing.

According to recently released transcripts of the deposition reported on by The Daily Beast, Mr Alexander accused Mr Kirk and TPUSA of paying to transport angry protesters to Washington DC for Donald Trump’s "Stop the Steal" rally.

“It sounds like you’re saying that to the extent that buses were paid for, with the exception of one possible one that you may have had for Stop the Steal, your involvement in the buses was basically to advertise Turning Point’s offering of the bus,” one of the committee representatives asked Mr Alexander.

"Yes," he replied.

Mr Kirk deleted a tweet he wrote in 2021 boasting that TPUSA had funded "80-plus buses full of patriots" to send to Washington DC for Mr Trump’s rally.

Mr Alexander’s apparent disdain for Mr Kirk became more apparent on Tuesday night after he spoke with The Daily Beast. He told the outlet that he questioned how "Charlie Kirk escaped any scrutiny when he made us bus in all those people on his funded buses."

"Fortunately, he’s losing donors and popularity while gaining face weight. Disgusting!" he told the publication.

He also called Mr Kirk a traitor, telling the outlet that "TPUSA turned their backs on the election integrity movement."

Mr Alexander has also taken to calling the organisation "Satanic Trafficking TPUSA" and has accused the group of engaging in a "systemic pattern of covering up sex scandals with non-profit money."

Mr Alexander took to his Telegram channel after the transcript of his deposition was released to host a call with his supporters on Tuesday night, according to The Daily Beast. He declared victory over the House Committee, claiming that Mr Kirk was a "f****** traitor" and that he "raped the January 6 Select Committee, in a legal, in a perfectly legal rape."

Mr Kirk also sat for a deposition at the behest of the House Select Committee. When asked about Mr Alexander during the deposition, he pleaded the Fifth.

The Independent has reached out to TPUSA and Mr Kirk for comment.

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