SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (NEXSTAR) — A pickup truck parked in a restricted area designated for members of Congress during the deadly January 6th insurrection bore the insignia of a right-wing anti-government militia group and a government-issued license plate belonging to an elected official from the Land of Lincoln.
The truck belongs to Illinois state representative Chris Miller (R-Oakland), a 66-year-old second-term statehouse Republican, and his wife Mary Miller, a newly elected member of Congress who recently apologized for quoting Adolf Hitler the day before the pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to disrupt the certification of the 2020 election.
The image of the truck was first identified online by a group of web sleuths that scours social media for video evidence of the insurrection incident and calls itself the ‘Sedition Hunters.’
The same group uploaded video to YouTube that shows Miller’s truck parked in a restricted area just outside the Capitol steps while rioters had already breached the security lines.
Jonathan Greenblatt with the Anti-Defamation League pointed out the license plate from Illinois’ 104th House District.
Illinois Republicans and Democrats have widely condemned Miller’s angry rhetoric at the January 6th riots at the Capitol where he declared he was engaged in a “great cultural war” against “dangerous Democrat terrorists” to “see which worldview will survive.”
Miller acknowledged the paramilitary decal was his, but claimed ignorance about its origins.
“I have never been a member of the 3 percenters,” state representative Chris Miller (R-Oakland) said in an email, before distancing himself from — and defending — the right-wing anarchist militia group.
Some of Miller’s neighbors have witnessed similar anarchist decals on vehicles parked outside their home.
“My son received the sticker that was on my truck from a family friend who said that it represented patriotism and love of country,” Miller said. “The original group, which has disbanded, was not a violent anti-government group. They were not involved in the Jan. 6th riots. They have issued a statement distancing themselves from the extremists who have copied their name. I have since removed the sticker. My intention was to display what I thought was a patriotic statement. I love our country and consider myself a patriot. My intention was not to hurt or offend anyone but simply to express what I thought was a statement of patriotism. God bless America.”
Recent reports revealed other militia groups, such as the Oath Keepers, were deeply involved in plotting the January 6th riots. Some have faced criminal prosecution.
Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article described the Three Percenters as anarchists. While the extremist militia group is anti-government, it embraces a militant form of authoritarianism and does not advocate for removing all societal hierarchies. We regret the error and apologize to anarchists.
