Patriot Front Debunked
Taking aim at myths, rumors, and lies surrounding white nationalist group Patriot Front
ADMIN NOTE: What follows is my take on Patriot Front, based on my own previous reporting on the group and my understanding from having followed them off and on for roughly five years. Also, I admit that I’m a partisan observer. I think Patriot Front is cringe, and I have every reason to call them out if I thought they were “run by the feds.” I care more about getting it right than being right, so if you have additional information, then I’m open to hearing it because what I don’t know is more than what I do know. Lastly, I don’t plan to revisit or update this post, but I will annotate changes, including what was changed and the date, if I do. - M.S.
Background
“Welp, looks like the FBI field office is back at it.”
That was the general reaction across conservative and right wing social media over the weekend, following video of a Patriot Front march in Nashville, Tennessee on Saturday.
The accusation that Patriot Front is just a bunch of FBI agents is a knee-jerk reaction, probably because conservatives have been conditioned to believe “everyone is a fed” and “everything is a pysop.” (Inb4 This article is a psyop!)
I think I understand where this reaction comes from.
It’s predominantly rooted in profound ignorance or a resistance to accepting nuance.
That’s not meant in a pejorative way, but in a literal way: lacking knowledge or information, which leads to poorly-formed conclusions. These people are trying to put together a puzzle but lack most of the pieces.
I’ll do my best to give you those pieces in this article.
I’m not trying to convince anyone of anything. As always, do your own research and arrive at your own conclusions. I’m merely providing my perspective here.
This post has two sections: the first is what I believe and why (including ways that I could be wrong), followed by explanations of common accusations against Patriot Front.
What I Believe to Be True
Before I deconstruct the bad takes from social media, I’ll write what I believe about Patriot Front (herein PF) and why.
Its founder/leader and its members are “authentic” in that they sincerely hold white nationalist views, even though they reject that term. They anticipate an opportunity to create a majority or exclusively white ethnostate.
For example, PF founder/leader Thomas Rousseau says that “American” as a term and an identity only applies to those of European descent, and he therefore calls himself an “American nationalist”1 — ergo, “white nationalist” is not preferred because it’s redundant.
The PF manifesto and online content repeatedly refer to the Founders’ ideas about who America was being created for: their progeny, their blood, their nation, or a people of a shared heritage and descent2 — not the “huddled masses… [and] wretched refuse” of today’s far flung Third World.
PF is intent on creating a new nation-state based on a strict definition of American identity. Their manifesto specifically calls for the creation of a “new American nation state” as a result of the coming “turmoil” and “transition,” presumably the collapse of the federal government.3
Thomas Rousseau discusses nonviolent political and social activism (disaster response, storm cleanup, trash pickups, etc.), but PF is a truly revolutionary organization. If this is true (which I believe it is), then PF can model either a revolutionary vanguard or mass political movement.
Near as I can tell, PF doesn’t openly advocate for a violent revolution or the overthrow of the U.S. Government. Rousseau may believe his best course of action is to build a movement around white nationalism while waiting for a U.S. collapse, as opposed to organizing an overtly revolutionary movement. But the PF manifesto states plainly that they intend to replace the nation-state as it exists today.4
The focus on optics, outreach, recruiting, and community building, as opposed to guns and warfighting, is an attempt to avoid the perception of being violent or dangerous. It’s the same reason why Rousseau pledges nonviolence at PF events. This, along with internal controls like a ban on member discussion of firearms, is Rousseau’s attempt at avoiding potential FBI entrapment of violent or criminal behavior that has snagged other groups. As opposed to the Three Percenters, Oathkeepers, and other armed groups associated with the political Right, avoiding escalation and instead focusing on community-building and nonviolent activism is a core part of the PF strategy.
I don’t believe Thomas Rousseau is a federal agent. I don’t believe the average Patriot Front member is a federal agent. At worst, FBI or DHS surveillance leverages the group’s recruitment activities as a de facto honeypot, but I don’t believe that is PF’s intent.
Thomas Rousseau has denied being a federal agent or being employed by a federal agency.5 (Not that this is worth anything, just pointing it out.) Of course, I can’t say that he is or is not, but I believe that he’s sincere in his beliefs and in his aim to establish a white ethnostate after a presumed collapse of the United States (not before, but this is debatable).
In his interview with Patrick Bet David (which is worth a watch), Rousseau says that perception of FBI infiltration into dissident groups is overstated and that they’ve never had an FBI agent join.6 I’m skeptical of Rousseau’s nonchalant answer about infiltration not being an acute concern. It should be.
Federal law enforcement (FBI or DHS) almost certainly has confidential human sources (CHS) inside Patriot Front. It’s possible that those informants are in places of lesser leadership or influence within the group, such as a Network Director position. Let’s talk about some internal operations security (OPSEC) controls implemented to prevent infiltration and exploitation.
Going back to the 1910s and 20s, the FBI has infiltrated and broken up domestic radical and subversive groups. Somewhere post-WWII, FBI agents and informants began actively seeking increased influence or leadership positions within these groups in order to steer them into activities that violated federal laws or to channel their energy into futile efforts.
I believe FBI uses two primary methods to subvert or destroy radical and subversive movements.7
The first is by creating internal division inside an organization. I’m sure plenty of this happens on its own, but the use of a CHS to exploit weak leadership, opposing visions, or perceived mistakes is likely standard practice for fracturing an organization. (PF was created after the fracturing of its predecessor, Vanguard America, in 2017.) Near as I can tell, Rousseau is the undisputed leader of PF, so I don’t believe this is a likely course of action.
The second is by creating opportunities for law-breaking or encouraging members to plan criminal behavior or acts of violence, otherwise known as entrapment. PF’s OPSEC appears to be intended to prevent this, and their training materials appear to focus on understanding the legal consequences of their activities. PF’s focus on nonviolent political activism and community outreach may reduce opportunities for federal entrapment.
According to Rousseau and internal documents, PF has OPSEC controls to avoid potential entrapment and other forms of exploitation. Members are not allowed to discuss firearms or illegal activity, for instance.8
Part of PF’s doctrinal material shows that members are encouraged to avoid learning the “real” identities of other members and, by extension, avoid giving others identifying information. This is an OPSEC feature intended to limit the amount of information one member can provide to law enforcement, even under legal coercion, or that can be obtained by Far Left doxxers or journalists. (I repeat myself.) PF additionally instructs its members to protect their name, appearance, and location to prevent doxxing.9 This partly explains why members wear matching uniforms, face coverings, and arm coverings for tattoos.
In addition to the OPSEC features listed above, PF training material instructs members against using personal phones to contact each other, cautions them to be mindful of possible connections and contamination via social media, and encourages them to use neutral sites for meetups (as opposed to private residences) and rented vehicles to avoid revealing license plates on personally owned vehicles.10 This is all pretty vanilla OPSEC stuff. The ironic thing is despite this OPSEC guidance, PF has been the target of multiple major leaks of chat logs, photographs, videos, and other media since 2018.11
PF is designed with security in mind. The vetting, interview, and selection process along with internal OPSEC controls in theory make PF a harder target than some of the come-as-you-are militia groups that have been infiltrated. That said, two significant online data leaks show a previous OPSEC weakness on three separate platforms (Discord, RocketChat, and Skype), while a documented case of physical infiltration into a PF group in Washington shows its networks remain susceptible.12 (I’m just going to venture a guess that if a left wing activist can infiltrate a PF chapter and pal around with its members, then federal law enforcement could do it. 🤔)
Lastly, let’s talk about some ways that I could be wrong. I have some big intelligence gaps of my own…
First, I admit that I know nothing about PF leadership, other than knowing who Rousseau is and watching his videos and speeches. It’s entirely possible that FBI or DHS has informants running as Network Directors, who oversee operations across specific regions of the United States and who would have access to sensitive, protected information, which may include the identities of members within that specific network.
Second, most of the available internal information comes from two major leaks — one in 2018 and another in 2022. In other words, it’s not recent. And it’s at least possible that PF has reorganized, or has modified or redesigned its networks, to include network leadership.
Third, not knowing the above information, there’s no way to state authoritatively that PF is or is not “being run by the feds.” I estimate PF membership runs between 250 and 500, although this is just a guess. Given that multiple state and federal law enforcement agencies have an interest in investigating PF, the chances that all of them are not informants is quite low, somewhere around zero percent. The placement and level of influence or control within PF would determine if the organization were “being run by the feds.” I believe it’s more likely than not that informants and/or federal agents aren’t in major leadership positions, but this is just a guess.
Bottom Line
I believe Rousseau is sincere in his beliefs, as are most of its members, so the best one could say is that PF is likely infiltrated but unlikely to be controlled by federal law enforcement. I will change my mind if the reasoning changes and I’m open to other perspectives. The bare minimum is that all members are known to federal law enforcement.
Debunking the Accusations
These are some of the common objections/accusations floating around social media. I’ll address each one, some of which are actual quotes (the rest are paraphrased), starting with my favorites.
“These guys never get attacked by Antifa. You know why? They’re feds.”
“The navy polos and khaki pants — too cringe to not be the FBI, amirite?”
“Real patriots wouldn’t cover their face. Must be the FBI.”
“I’ve never even heard of these guys before. Must be the new FBI group!”
“There’s not a fat guy to be seen. I couldn’t round up a dozen right wingers without half of them being obese. You know who is all fit? The FBI.”
“These guys have never been arrested or doxxed. Must be FBI!”
“These guys have police protection wherever they go. It must be so none of the FBI agents get attacked.”
“I’ve seen nothing in the legacy media about Patriot Front. Yet other right wing groups have a constant flow of hit pieces. Must be the FBI.”
“The FBI have destroyed people’s lives for far less and leave these retards alone. And we probably know why (FBI).”
“They never get attacked by Antifa. They must be feds.”
First, Patriot Front doesn’t openly announce their marches ahead of time, which limits the time for antifascist militants and protestors to mobilize.
To give an example, on the night of 03 November 2017, Patriot Front members held a flash mob of 25-30 members at the University of Texas. I was signed up for the text alerts organized by left wing groups like the Autonomous Student Network and the Revolutionary Student Front, who tried to mobilize demonstrators. Patriot Front members were confronted by police and left.
They held another flash mob at the Texas Capitol in March 2018, which was just long enough to make a propaganda video.
In November 2019, a masked Patriot Front group showed up at an anarchist book fair in Boston, Massachusetts, shouted some slogans and were then forced to leave. Not a fight, per se, but they’re rarely this confrontational.
While most marches have been nonviolent, Patriot Front members are being sued by a black musician who says they beat him during July 2022 march in Boston, Massachusetts.13
More recent marches and demonstrations are usually over before protestors can be mobilized.
Second, Antifa has been very quiet since 2021. Counterdemonstrations and black bloc events have been sparse. There’s just not the same sense of urgency that there was from 2016-2021, so mobilization takes longer and turns out fewer people, anyway.
Third, Patriot Front members did get into a confrontation during their 2021 march in Philadelphia, PA. (This opinion piece, which appeared at NBC News, was written by well-known antifascist researcher Shane Burley.) 14
“But they wear blue polos and khakis. Must be feds.”
Yes, polos and khakis are a common business casual outfit worn by law enforcement. Still, this is not evidence of them being FBI agents. Polos and khakis blend into most urban environments where these PF marches take place.
Someone alluded to this uniform being reminiscent of the Continental Army’s blue coat and beige pants worn during the American Revolution. I can’t confirm this is the reason, but it’s feasible.
Finally, I think their uniforms are cringey, but it could be worse. They could be wearing multicam.
“Real patriots wouldn’t cover their face. They must be feds.”
PF training materials are clear that anonymity is the bedrock of their activism. Face coverings and other efforts to hide their identity also prevent them from being doxxed and fired from their jobs. There are countless examples of members of white nationalist groups who faced sustained unemployment or under-employment due to their Google search results.
Also, I’m in no way comparing PF to the Founders, but some of the Founders did routinely use pseudonyms and take anonymous action throughout the Revolutionary War period. The Founders were real patriots who at times did cover their faces.
“I’ve never even heard of these guys before. They must be feds.”
This statement comes from a place of profound ignorance. Patriot Front has actively organized since 2017, and before that as Vanguard America. They’ve held numerous well-publicized marches, organized stickering/wheat-pasting campaigns across the country, and produced frequent propaganda videos every year since 2017. If you haven’t heard of them before this year, maybe that’s an indictment of your own lack of knowledge.
“There’s not a fat guy to be seen. Must be feds.”
Patriot Front selects for fitness. This goes back to the fascist belief in aesthetics and desire for good optics. I’m not sure how many obsese members are in PF, but I do know they’re not allowed to attend the marches. Ten pounds of potatoes in a five pound sack is not good optics.
“These guys have never been arrested or doxxed. Must be FBI!”
Also wrong. Patriot Front members have been doxxed going back to 2017. A simple Google search followed by actual arrest and court records can prove this. It literally takes five minutes.
By far, the most interesting case stems from the June 2022 arrest of 31 Patriot Front members in Coeur d’Alene Idaho.15
Much of what follows appeared on a Twitter Spaces chat between conservative Idaho activists and FBI whistleblower Kyle Seraphin.16 It’s worth the listen, but I’ll give you the synopsis. (Inb4 Kyle is psyop!)
On 11 June 2022, 31 members of Patriot Front were arrested on their way to protest a “Pride in the Park” LGBTQ+ event in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, which was being sponsored by an area Satanist group and was scheduled to feature a runaway for drag queens in front of children. According to news articles, police pulled over a U-Haul van after a bystander alerted police to a group of masked men entering the van.
According to Seraphin, a former FBI Special Agent who was terminated for testifying on the weaponization of government during a U.S. House hearing, the FBI violated the civil rights of Patriot Front members through the illegal search and seizure of cell phones. (And if I’m butchering this explanation, I will revise/amend.) To wit:
After the arrests, police discover a bag of 37 mobile devices, SD cards, cameras, and a flash drive taken from a vehicle away from the U-Haul truck.17
The Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) based in Coeur d’Alene then drafts a search warrant for the electronic devices.
This AUSA, who has a trans son, according to Seraphin, is attending the Pride at the Park event. The AUSA sends the search warrant to local authorities who refuse to execute the search due to a lack of probable cause. As Seraphin explains it, the AUSA writes a bunch of investigative leg work as the basis for the warrant, but local authorities aren’t willing to take it at face value, and thus decline to execute.
The AUSA then sends the warrant to the Special Agent in Charge at the Coeur d’Alene Field Office, who also refuses to execute the warrant for the same reason. He was later terminated and is expected to file a lawsuit against the FBI for wrongful termination.
At this point, another FBI Special Agent based out of the Boise Field Office agrees to drive up to Coeur d’Alene to execute this search warrant. She is a lesbian, according to Seraphin, who may have had some motivation to assist in the investigation. According to her sworn statement, she didn’t need to read the AUSA’s probable cause statement because she already knew there was probable cause.
So the cell phones are turned over to the FBI to be searched, but not before a sealed warrant could be signed. According to one investigative report, the exploitation took seven months and then the FBI refused to give back the phones. Rousseau’s defense attorney believed that one of the cell phones had a video of Rousseau advising members not to become violent during the planned confrontation, which would undermine the prosecutor’s charges. Worse, the FBI essentially lost the evidence, and then prosecutors were uncooperative with defense attorneys.18
Judges then dismiss charges against Rousseau and another member due to prosecutorial misconduct. (* It’s at this point everyone lets out a collective groan. If there’s one solid reason to suspect Rousseau of being a federal agent or informant, it’s right here. Prosecutors say, however, they want to re-try Rousseau’s case.) But other cases are allowed to go through, and ultimately 20 of the 31 arrested take plea deals to a charge of “participating in a parade without a permit” while five are convicted of conspiracy to riot. One other member is later convicted of multiple counts of sexual exploitation of a minor over child p***.19
Additionally, Kris Goldsmith from Task Force Butler, which bills itself as “Veterans Against Fascism,”20 told reporters that Rousseau could be subject to a civil lawsuit, even if the criminal one fails. “Rousseau will fade into irrelevance and will spend the rest of his life in debt [presumably after a large monetary civil judgment against him]… And those around him, the top lieutenants in Patriot Front, will be tied to him like an anchor,” Goldsmith said.21
“These guys have police protection where ever they go. Must be FBI!”
We’ve all seen the videos of police surrounding Patriot Front on some of their marches. Near as I can tell, this is not police protection, per se, but a security presence to prevent altercations during the marches. And not all marches have had a police presence. There may also be some obligation to provide security during a permitted parade. (This is an area for further research: Does Patriot Front obtain parade permits before their marches? If so, what is their cover?)
“I’ve seen nothing in the legacy media about Patriot Front. Must be feds!”
Again, more ignorance. A simple Google search can disprove this in 30 seconds. All major news outlets have reported on them.
“The FBI have destroyed people’s lives for far less and leave these retards alone. And we probably know why (FBI).”
Finally, for now (because Substack says this post is too long for email readers), yes, the FBI has destroyed the lives of a great many political activists, and Patriot Front is considered much worse by law enforcement. So why hasn’t the DOJ gone after these guys?
First, law enforcement hasn’t left them alone. As we just covered, dozens of PF members have been found guilty of relatively minor charges. But if this is the worst thing that’s happening, what would the DOJ charge them on? Organizing marches? You’re telling me that the FBI runs this group and instead of building IEDs or sawing off shotgun barrels, they’re organizing peaceful marches? Maybe some people are right. Maybe this is just the collection phase of a grand coup of RICO charges against hundreds of its members. The FBI has wiped out entire organizations before. So, maybe.
One retired law enforcement officer tells me (via Twitter) that the DOJ could likely go after them on numerous minor infractions, even if entrapment over domestic terrorism isn’t a possibility. I won’t deny the ability of the Department of Justice to dismantle Patriot Front over relatively lesser charges (tax evasion, fraud, falsifying information, or any of the other standard charges levied against political adversaries). Maybe that’s the plan.
As always, I value informed and respectful feedback. If I change my mind on any of this, I’ll post about it. Otherwise, it’s back to sharing notes on the past, present, and future of low intensity conflict. Thanks for reading. - M.S.
https://youtube. com/watch?v=lTx0UD8p01o
https://patriotfront.us/manifesto/
Ibid.
Ibid.
https://youtube. com/watch?v=lTx0UD8p01o
https://youtube. com/watch?v=lTx0UD8p01o
This is based on books like Burrough’s Days of Rage, Cunningham’s There’s Something Happening Here, Davis’ Syping on America, which detail FBI counterintelligence activities directed against domestic radical groups. For instance, Burrough documents that Sam Melville, the architect of a left wing domestic bombing spree in 1969, was arrested with a longtime friend and associate who was informing the FBI of Melville’s activities.
https://youtube. com/watch?v=lTx0UD8p01o
https://unicornriot.ninja/a-guide-to-patriot-fronts-leaked-media-files/
Ibid.
Ibid.
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/times-watchdog/far-right-patriot-front-members-sue-leftist-infiltrator-who-exposed-their-identities/
https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/02/us/boston-patriot-front-white-nationalist-group-march/index.html
https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/philadelphia-bystanders-ran-patriot-front-out-town-it-won-t-ncna1273283
https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2022/jun/11/large-group-of-masked-men-detained-in-coeur-dalene/
https://x.com/AssembleXIdaho/status/1760483502028726587
https://idahocapitalsun.com/2024/02/12/how-north-idaho-prosecutors-lost-the-case-against-patriot-fronts-white-nationalist-leader/
Ibid.
Ibid.
https://www.taskforcebutler.org/
https://idahocapitalsun.com/2024/02/12/how-north-idaho-prosecutors-lost-the-case-against-patriot-fronts-white-nationalist-leader/
Well done, sir