"But to the extent there's a suggestion, for example, that the FBI's confidential human sources or FBI employees in someway instigated or orchestrated Jan 6th, that's categorically false."

—Christopher Wray

How extensive was Deep State involvement in the January 6 "insurrection"? 

The January 6 "insurrection" has been a propaganda bonanza for the Deep State.  Would it have required exceptional foresight to predict the outcome of Trump-supporters' march on Washington?  President Trump had held dozens of peaceful rallies during his campaign.  Now his supporters had gone berserk.  Or had they?  Several anti-Trump groups had an interest in seeing violence on Jan 6.  Radical leftist groups like Antifa and BLM would be vindicated to an extent.  The Democrat party would gain support as a result of the violence.  And even those federal government agencies controlled by the Deep State would benefit.

Christopher Wray claimed that FBI agents "have not to date seen any evidence of anarchist violent extremists or people subscribing to Antifa in connection with the 6th."  This was an excellent opportunity for radical groups to discredit Trump-supporters.  Contrary to Wray's claim, at least one radical was exposed right from the beginning. 

John Sullivan (Jayden X), dressed as a Trump-supporter, shouted, "If we don't get in, we're going to burn this s--- down!" as he approached the Capitol.  

U.S. district judge Emmet Sullivan, who so tenaciously sought to convict former national security adviser Michael Flynn, allowed Sullivan to be released from jail following his arrest.  Defendants who peacefully walked around the Capitol building have been charged with "seditious conspiracy," which carries a 20-year prison sentence.  Sullivan is presently working for the Ukrainian government as some kind of war correspondent.

Democrat party organizations also saw January 6 as an opportunity to discredit Trump.  Project Veritas recorded Scott Foval, national field director of Americans United for Change, and Robert Creamer, founder of Democracy Advocates and the husband of Rep. Janice D. Schakowsky, Illinois Democrat, discussing their roles in planting paid agitators at campaign events for Donald Trump.  Although Creamer stepped down and Foval was fired, that does not mean they abandoned their efforts to discredit Trump.

One of the reasons the events of January 6 took place was because of an alleged intelligence failure.  The impression was given that the government did not have informants among the groups planning to attack the Capitol.  In March 2021, Senator Amy Klobuchar told Wray, "There must be moments where you think if we could have known, if we could have infiltrated this group or found out what they were doing.  Do you have those moments?"  Wray responded, "Absolutely ... we aim to bat a thousand percent and to thwart every attack that is out there ... you can be darn tootin' that we are focused very, very hard on how we can get better sources, better information, better analysis, so that we can make sure that something like what happened on January 6 never happens again."  

This exchange has been used to suggest that the FBI did not have informants in these groups.  It is almost too perfect and was quite possibly rehearsed, like the 51 intelligence officials who claimed the Hunter laptop "has the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation."  This was used to imply that the laptop was Russian disinformation while the officials could later deny that they were claiming it was.  The truth is that several law enforcement agencies had dozens of agents and informants among the protesters.  Steven Sund, chief of the Capital Police, told Tucker Carlson the Jan. 6 protest was filled with federal agents.

These agents and informants frequently do not face charges.  They are referred to as "unindicted co-conspirators."  According to Revolver News, these "unindicted co-conspirators" often "appear to be much more aggressive" than other protesters.  This has led Christopher Wray to assert, "The suggestion that the FBI's confidential human sources or FBI employees in some way instigated or orchestrated Jan 6th, that's categorically false."  Wray would be more believable if he had a history of providing accurate information to Congress.  However, he repeatedly claims he has to be "very careful" about releasing information or he can't answer because the matter is under investigation.

Initially, the government refused to release the videotapes of the incident.  They would not even trust their colleagues in the Boston field office.  Retired supervisory intelligence analyst George Hill from the Boston field office testified that he was told by the Washington field office that they could not provide Boston with the tapes, "because there may be" — may be — "UCs," undercover officers, "or CHSes," confidential human sources, "on those videos whose identity we need to protect."

Could these undercover agents be responsible for much of the violence on Jan. 6?

Revolver News details how the more violent plotters in the Gretchen Whitmer "kidnapping" plot (5 of 13) were government informants.  The plotter who suggested using a bomb to blow up a bridge as part of that plot was an undercover FBI agent.  Tucker Carlson reported that the government's own court filings reveal that enforcement officers participated in the riot, sometimes in violent ways.  The New York Times has reported there have been twenty terrorist plots against the U.S.  Three of those plots were real; the other 17 were created — and then stopped — by the FBI.

The government knew there would be violence because in many instances they are likely the ones who initiated it.  They did nothing to prevent it.  Sen. Gary Peters, chair of the Homeland Security Committee, said to NBC News: "Given the number of news reports and social media posts indicating violence ahead of Jan. 6, the FBI absolutely should have seen this attack coming and should have informed law enforcement to be ready."  Rep. Eric Swalwell was warned by family and friends there would be violence.  He commented, "They didn't have access to intelligence.  But they did read the tweets from President Trump and his supporters.  This was completely foreseeable."

There are a lot of questions about January 6.  No one can say that the government has been open about what transpired.  This has resulted in speculation that the government was involved.  

John Dietrich is a freelance writer and the author of The Morgenthau Plan: Soviet Influence on American Postwar Policy (Algora Publishing).  He has a Master of Arts degree in international relations from St. Mary's University.  He is retired from the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.  He is featured on the BBC's program "Things We Forgot to Remember:" Morgenthau Plan and Post-War Germany.

Image: Official portrait.