Conventional militia organizations are racing to distance themselves from the Hutaree — the Christian-based militia whose members were charged yesterday with conspiring to kill law enforcement as part of their preparation for the coming battle with the Anti-Christ. But that may be a tall order.
Appearing on CNN this morning, Michael Lackomar, a member of the Southeast Michigan Volunteer Militia, called the Hutaree — also primarily based in Michigan — “really a fringe group outside of anything we do.”
“They’re more of a private army or a terrorist organization or really just a criminal organization,’ said Lackomar. He added that some of the Hutaree had sought refuge over the weekend with members of his group, who advised the Hutaree to turn themselves in.
But Mark Potok, the executive director of the Southern Poverty law Center, which tracks extremist groups, told TPMmuckraker that the Hutaree fit comfortably within the broader militia movement.
“The Hutaree were apparently ensconced right smack in the middle of the militia movement,” said Potok.
Potok explained that the more secular militia groups foresee an impending catastrophe in the form of the federal government confiscating weapons, imposing martial law, and herding those who resist into concentration camps. Ultimately, he said, they fear that the U.S. will be subsumed into a socialistic “One World Order,” under supra-national bodies like the U.N. or the EU.
“The only difference with the Hutarees is that they put this millenial spin on it,” Potok said. In their version, the coming catastrophe involves the appearance of the Anti-Christ, but groups like the U.N. and E.U. are also vilified — as we’ve noted. “It’s very much the same idea.”
Operationally, the Hutaree appears to have at least some ties to the broader movement. Potok said that the group’s Facebook page, now removed, listed a large number of well-known militia groups as friends. And he noted that the federal indictment released yesterday referred to a recent aborted effort by Hutaree members to attend a militia summit in Kentucky.
In addition, as we’ve reported, Kristopher Sickles, one of the nine Hutaree members to be charged, has in the past released videos in which he refers to himself as a member of the “Ohio Militia,” and calls for people to arm themselves and march on Washington. In one of the videos, Sickles thanks members of the Michigan militia for the use of a training ground.
