>> Thank you.
Geoff: We are going to focus now
on how Mr. Trump's calls for
protest regarding his arrest
have sparked concerns about the
possibility of fresh political
violence.
Laura barron-lopez joins us now
to discuss how security
officials are monitoring and
preparing for a host of threats.
Thank you for being here.
I know you spent the day
tracking reaction to today's
developments among Mr. Trump
supporters, allies.
What have you found?
Laura: A number of those who
support the president, house
speaker Mccarthy called this a
weaponization of government.
Ted Cruz called it a frivolous
charge.
Marjorie Taylor Greene said that
she and other Republicans will
never abandon the president.
So, there is still a lot of
rallying around the former
president.
I want to also highlight some of
the recent polling that dropped
after the indictment.
A CNN poll showed 60% of
Americans approve the
indictment.
40% disapprove.
When it comes to Republicans'
opinion of trump, 72% have
high favorable of trump.
He's very much still has a grasp
on that base.
Another data point is that the
trump campaign says they have
fun raised some $10 million
since the news of his
indictment.
Geoff: As we reported, Donald
Trump supporters and anti-Trump
protesters swarmed the streets
outside the courthouse today.
That was a spectacle.
Beyond that, there are real
concerns about the net effect of
Donald Trump using this arrest
and arraignment to rile up his
supporters.
You have been speaking to
extremists, experts about that.
Laura: The experts I have been
speaking to say it is not
necessarily that they are
looking at violence to break out
at a protest like the one
that was held today.
They are looking at right wing
extremist group, neonazis, the
coordinated movement that has
mobilized in the trump era.
I spoke to a historian at
northwestern university.
An expert in the white power
movement and she offered this
warning.
>> What we have here with the
indictment is an opportunity for
extremists who are interested
not in any kind of americanism,
but instead are interested in
overthrowing the United States
to create a white ethno-state.
This gives those folks an
opportunity to reach into the
trump base, to find people who
are frustrated and disaffected
by this ruling, and to recruit
and radicalize for their own
purposes.
Laura: You heard her say that
essentially, the indictment, the
arrest, the subsequent
revelation of the charges all
connect as a triggering action
for extremist groups.
Geoff: There are people who
argue that Donald Trump's
influence is waning despite his
sizable command over a certain
part of the Republican base.
He does not draw the same big
crowds.
He does not use Twitter in the
way he used to.
Does that lessen the prospects
for political violence?
Laura: I asked Kathleen exactly
about this and whether or not
his influence was waning and she
essentially said trump is still
seen as a figurehead for the
militant and white power groups,
but it goes beyond him.
>> This is a movement that
organizes in cells and that uses
any open window for what it
attempts to do.
Even if his crowd attendance is
waning, even if the mainstream
part of his movement is waning,
the continued call-outs to
extremists are still there.
And we're not talking about a
group of people that needs a
large number in order to
effectively mobilize violence.
Laura: When she talked about the
potential for militant groups to
take action or is so-called lone
wolf, essentially they are
looking at the upcoming Oklahoma
City bombing anniversary on
April 19.
They say what people should be
on the watch for our potential
attacks on federal buildings, on
power stations and other
paramilitary activity.
Geoff: What does the online
chatter suggest?
We know that extremists were
very active on social media in
advance of the January 6 attack.
What are the expert saying about
that?
Laura: I spoke to Collin Clark,
a senior researcher at the
center that tracks extremism.
He is looking at websites like
telegram, gab, and other all
right sites.
He told me in the last 24 to 48
hours, there has been more
volume, vitriol, and language
like take our country back.
He also said especially on
telegram, what it is reminding
him of his the frenzy, the
social media storm that occurred
after the FBI raided mar-a-lago.
And then when we saw in