It's been over a week since Donald Trump started unsubtly begging his supporters to lash out against government officials like Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. The former president kicked things off with an all-caps Truth Social post demanding people "PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!" When the violence didn't materialize, Trump escalated. He threatened "death & destruction" if prosecutors didn't back down, posted a photo implying he wanted to beat Bragg with a baseball bat, and sneered at people calling for his supporters to remain "peaceful." The escalating rhetoric culminated in a rally Saturday in Waco, Texas, which was an unsubtle call-out to the far-right militia movement's veneration of cult leader David Koresh, who has become an inspirational figure for those who want to wage war with the federal government.
There have been some death threats to Bragg, some of them quite scary. The possibility of a lone unhinged actor lashing out still looms large. But it's becoming pretty clear that another January 6-style riot is unlikely. Trump fans are even circulating conspiracy theories that the FBI is trying to trick them into rioting. Trump supporters probably don't believe this story, since it requires assuming that Trump is letting the FBI use his social media account to bamboozle them into getting arrested. It's likely more that they're afraid of ending up like all the January 6 rioters who are still sitting in a D.C. jail.
