'We want retribution': Atlantic staffer warns MAGA is even more disturbing in-person

Some defenders of President-elect Donald Trump and the MAGA movement argue that when MAGA Republicans say threatening, ominous things online, they are simply blowing off steam. More than once, Vice-President-elect JD Vance has accused Trump's critics of blowing his comments way out of proportion and failing to realize that some of his in-your-face comments are simply meant to be humorous.

But The Atlantic's Ali Breland, in an article published on December 18, stresses that when MAGA Republicans say disturbing things, they need to be taken seriously.

Breland recently attended a New York Young Republicans Club gathering, where the MAGA attendees included "War Room" host Steve Bannon (the keynote speaker), Proud Boys co-founder Gavin McInnes, former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), and Rep.-elect Brandon Gill (R-Texas). And one of the big takeaways, according to Breland, is that MAGA Republicans are even more disturbing in person than they are online.

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McInnes, at the event, angrily told Breland, "You should slit your wrists."

"Trump and his supporters haven't exactly been quiet about their fantasies and promises," Breland explains. "Trump talked about mass deportations all throughout the campaign, and has doubled down since his victory. But there is a meaningful difference between being aware of the rhetoric and truly experiencing its full force."

Breland continues, "As a reporter who covers the far-right internet, I've seen countless posts from people like Gill and Bannon talking about deporting as many immigrants as possible or incarcerating Democrats and the press. But to hear these men fervently say it and watch a crowd of more than 1000 erupt into cheers and laughter in response added a new dimension."

The Atlantic staffer emphasizes that what he saw at the New York Young Republicans Club went way beyond ordinary conservative trolling.

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"They don't just want policies," Breland warns, "and they're not just s---posting to provoke people online. They want their enemies to suffer, and they want to relish in their pain."

Breland notes that "revenge" was a recurring theme at the event.

Bannon told the crowd that Democrats and the mainstream media "need to learn what populist nationalist power is on the receiving end," adding, "We want retribution."

According to Breland, "The theme of the evening was revenge: During the forthcoming Trump Administration, various speakers said, there would be hell to pay. Enemies of the state would be arrested and put in jail, or deported. The intensity of McInnes' disdain for the media was an outlier, but only barely."

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Ali Breland's full article for The Atlantic is available at this link (subscription required).