A guest post by Blue State Conservative contributor John Green.
Is Ray Epps the key to uncovering a deep state conspiracy that many of us have suspected for years? With what we have witnessed with Midyear Exam, Crossfire Hurricane, the Whitmer Kidnapping, the 2020 election, and now the January 6 “insurrection,” it has become obvious that our government is not that of a healthy functioning democratic republic. But the depths of the corruption, and how far bad actors are willing to go in corrupting our society, have largely remained hidden. But there are encouraging signs.
When a doctor examines a patient, he will often use palpation. He uses his hands to poke and prod the body looking for swelling, lumps, breaks, or painful reactions. When the body reacts, the doc knows he has found the source of the problem. Well, Ted Cruz just palpated the FBI, and the whole Democrat body politic flinched.
On January 11, Senator Cruz questioned Jill Sanborn, the Executive Assistant Director of the FBI’s National Security Branch. He questioned her about Ray Epps. Does the FBI know Epps? Does the FBI have a working relationship with Epps? Is the FBI pursuing Epps in relation to the events on January 6? What he got was obfuscation and a total lack of eye contact. Can’t comment on an ongoing investigation — blah, blah, blah. The same excuse the DoJ has used to avoid questions about every scandal from Fast and Furious to Crossfire Hurricane.
And then, the Democrat body politic yelped. Within hours of Sanborn’s questioning, the January 6 inquisition committee released a statement:
“The select committee has interviewed Mr. Epps. Mr. Epps informed us that he was not employed by, working with, or acting at the direction of any law enforcement agency on January 5th or 6th or at any other time and that he has never been an informant for the FBI or any other law enforcement agency.”
The statement reads like the committee is representing Epps and raises more questions than it answers. It didn’t say that the committee had confirmed that Epps wasn’t working with law enforcement, only that he told them he wasn’t. It doesn’t say if Epps was associated with some other government agency (CIA, DHS, etc.). For that matter, it doesn’t say if Epps is paid by the DNC. It reads like a press release intended to get people to stop asking questions about something they should be asking more questions about.
Then Adam Kinzinger (R, Vichy) squealed. The most irrelevant politician in the current Congress ran to the Twitter asylum to defend Ray Epps. He announced that Epps hadn’t been arrested because he hadn’t done anything wrong. He was just a misled man. So, the same Kinzinger who condones the incarceration of citizens for taking selfies while standing on Capitol grounds, is okay with Epps standing on Capitol grounds shouting for people to enter the Capitol. There is a misled fool in this story, but it isn’t Epps.
The propaganda arm of the Democrat party also reacted. Within 24 hours of Senator Ted Cruz’s probing, the New York Times, NBC, and Washington Post (and probably a lot more) all ran stories announcing that the committee press release puts the matter to bed once and for all. Nothing to see here — go back to watching Big Bang reruns. The propaganda ministry always claims there’s nothing to see when there is something really important, and really inconvenient, that you need to see.
Who is Ray Epps? He’s a Marine veteran and the owner of a ranch in Arizona that is used as a wedding venue. He is also the former president of the Arizona chapter of the Oath Keepers — a group that has been under the watchful eye of the FBI for some time. Prior to 2021, Epps and his wife were listed as officers of Patriot Holdings LLC — a commercial real estate company. They were removed from their positions in May of 2021. It is unknown if their departure from Patriot Holdings resulted in any financial distress for the couple. We don’t know if Ray Epps is, or has been, an asset to a federal agency. We do know that his background would make him a prime candidate for recruitment. We also know that there have been a number of curious connections between the feds and the Oath Keepers.
On January 5, the night before the Capitol break-in, Ray Epps was seen on numerous videos approaching groups of people around the Capitol. He used a canned speech to encourage everyone to enter the Capitol – supposedly for the sake of the Constitution. All rejected his advice, with some even accusing him of being a fed.
On January 6, Epps is seen prominently on video footage again. He arrived on Capitol grounds while Donald Trump’s speech was still underway. He again spent much of his time shouting to the crowd and encouraging them to enter the Capitol. It even appeared that he may have some involvement in coordinating the breach. He is seen speaking to one protester, who then removed barriers and “no trespassing” signs. He is also seen talking to another protester, telling him he can’t take a can of bear spray into the Capitol. That man was later involved in the actual breach of the Capitol doors. Epps also encouraged protesters to stay away from the police. It was obvious he wanted the Capitol breached, but he wanted no casualties on either side. Throughout January 6, Epps appeared to be giving orders, that others seemed to be following.
Initially, the FBI included a photo of Ray Epps on its “Most Wanted” list, identifying him only as suspect 16. Left-wing groups, including Antifa, jumped into action to help the FBI locate and prosecute the “Trump-supporting traitors.” They quickly verified that Ray Epps was suspect 16, located his address, compiled as much background information as was available, and provided it to the FBI. Was Epps arrested? Nope. Was his property searched? Not as far as we know. On July 1, the FBI quietly removed him from its “Most Wanted” list. Curious, no?
The deep state is behaving like any other criminal enterprise. Success leads to hubris and their adventures get bolder and bolder. The deep state has already affected an election outcome. How swollen do you suppose their ego has become? But eventually, hubris meets nemesis. They go too far. They take too many chances and are exposed. Was January 6 the operation that went too far? Was stealing an election not enough? Did they have to discredit all conservatives as well? Was conducting their caper in front of hundreds of thousands of Americans, and thousands of video cameras, just a bit too bold?
We don’t know if Ray Epps will be the key to exposing a deep state conspiracy. But, the circumstances of his involvement in January 6 beg for a serious inquiry — as opposed to the clown show San Fran Nan is currently running. Hopefully, when the next Congress is sworn in, Ted Cruz will get to do some more palpating — with subpoenas in hand this time.
By John Green
John Green is a political refugee from Minnesota, now residing in Idaho. He currently writes at the American Free News Network (afnn.us).
