The FBI has confirmed it is investigating an incident involving a group of vehicles waving Trump flags swarming a Biden-Harris campaign bus in Texas on Friday afternoon. This “Trump train” incident is among several vehicle-related altercations between Trump and Biden supporters around the country.
What We Know:
- A Biden campaign traveling from San Antonio to Austin, Texas was swarmed by a caravan of vehicles adorned with Trump flags. Passengers inside the bus alerted 911 that they feared they would be run off the road; luckily, nobody was harmed and the bus was able to reach its destination with aid from police escorts. However, the Biden event in Austin was cancelled.
- In response to the bus altercation, President Trump tweeted a video of the interstate altercation and captioned “I love Texas!” Following the FBI’s statement to investigate the disturbance, President Trump responded in a tweet encouraging the swarm of “patriots” and defending that they did nothing wrong. The President then urged the FBI to instead, investigate the looting and rioting conducted by “Antifa terrorists” in “Democrat run cities”.
I LOVE TEXAS! pic.twitter.com/EP7P3AvE8L
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 1, 2020
- This “Trump Train” attack was one of several occurring in states across the country including Kentucky, Indiana, New Jersey, Virginia, and California. In these states, caravan groups sporting Trump decorations have clashed with Biden supporters, causing incidents involving armed protesters, weapons being fired, pepper spray being used on bystanders, and parts of cities being shutdown.
- According to the Voter Protection Program, incidents like these that attempt to intimidate and harass voters are illegal among all states; even if the attempted intimidation is conducted from within a vehicle. In their document addressing driver activity around election, they list examples of illegal voter intimidation that include: tailgating other vehicles; swerving aggressively towards pedestrians or other vehicles; coordinated blocking of traffic; aggressively revving engines as voters pass; and following voters to, from, or within polling places.
As election day is nearly here, we can expect to see larger political demonstrations across popular U.S. cities that intend to disturb the democratic process through voter intimidation. If you encounter or witness intimidation, you are encouraged to call the Election Protection Hotline at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683), or the U.S. Department of Justice voting rights hotline at 1-800-253-3931.
