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This is what really happened when Chelsea Manning partied with the far right
The full mic.com article here!
Over the weekend, photos surfaced of Manning attending a gala held on Saturday by the far right’s most acerbic demagogues. As Manning insisted that she was there to “crash” the A Night for Freedom party at the five-story nightclub FREQ NYC, new photos surfaced. A few showed her laughing along at the party with far-right talking head Gavin McInnes, who once called trans people “gender niggers.” Meanwhile, photos dating back to November emerged showing Manning posing after an “escape room” game with pro-Trump conspiracy hustlers including Lucian Wintrich and Jack Posobiec.
The reaction from many on the anti-Trump left has included feelings of confusion and betrayal. Advocates and enemies reached for myriad explanations for how it is that Manning — military whistleblower and hero to the anti-fascist left — ended up at a right-wing rager.
Is Manning a secret fascist? No, it turns out — she’s just allowed a trusted confidante to lead her into catastrophe, yet again.
To anyone familiar with key players in right-wing political drama, the attendance list would have set off major red flags. One attendee was Wintrich, a coworker of Fairbanks’ at the Gateway Pundit and a fake news purveyor. Another was Posobiec, famous for, among other things, advancing the “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory that led a gunman to a Washington, D.C., pizzeria in search of a fake pedophile ring.
Fairbanks asked the group whether it was alright to bring Manning. They were happy to have her. Mic was told by those in attendance, as well as Manning’s campaign staff, that she was never fully briefed on exactly who she would be hanging out with.
To call the attendees of the gala part of the “alt-right” is a delicate category error. The event was held by the leaders of the “alt-lite” or “new right,” a loose coalition of pro-Trump internet celebrities and new media stuntmen who, while avowedly anti-white nationalist, nevertheless advance anti-black, anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant talking points. Mike Cernovich, the party’s headlining host, built his reputation as a rape apologist blogger, was once charged with sexual assault and also famously advanced the “pizzagate” conspiracy theory.
For many on the left watching from home, however, the damage was done. By attending the event at all, Manning set herself up for accusations of co-signing a gala of pseudo-fascists and white supremacists.
Those on the right, on the other hand, were quick to brag about how civil they’d been to Manning, even as her Twitter mentions filled to the brim with transphobic abuse. For those who always considered Manning a traitor, the photos were evidence that she was a pox on progressive politics all along. And for purportedly left-leaning conspiracy theorists, the event became a part of a broader plot.
Fairbanks told Mic she’s now wracked with guilt, blaming herself for the damage and for pulling a vulnerable friend past the cameras and straight into a public relations catastrophe.
But perhaps no one was hurt more than Manning. Muslim activist Linda Sarsour, who endorsed Manning’s senate campaign, told BuzzFeed’s Joe Bernstein that Manning “expressed extreme regret” to Sarsour for attending the party, and was on “the verge of tears.” Two individuals close to Manning confirmed to Mic that she’s deeply upset that there’d be any doubt as to her anti-fascist credibility.
But Manning’s new constituency — the anarchists, the transgender rights activists, the radically anti-fascist left — are unlikely to tolerate any further fraternizing with right-wing provocateurs. No more parties. No more game nights. Wintrich told Mic he wouldn’t fault Manning for distancing herself further from them.
Fairbanks told Mic she wanted to make clear was it was never her intention to try to convert Manning to the far right. Indeed, she said she never believed anything of the sort would be possible.
“She has more guts and backbone than anyone else I have ever known,” Fairbanks said. “The left should be proud to have her.”
The reaction from many on the anti-Trump left has included feelings of confusion and betrayal. Advocates and enemies reached for myriad explanations for how it is that Manning — military whistleblower and hero to the anti-fascist left — ended up at a right-wing rager.
Is Manning a secret fascist? No, it turns out — she’s just allowed a trusted confidante to lead her into catastrophe, yet again.
To anyone familiar with key players in right-wing political drama, the attendance list would have set off major red flags. One attendee was Wintrich, a coworker of Fairbanks’ at the Gateway Pundit and a fake news purveyor. Another was Posobiec, famous for, among other things, advancing the “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory that led a gunman to a Washington, D.C., pizzeria in search of a fake pedophile ring.
Fairbanks asked the group whether it was alright to bring Manning. They were happy to have her. Mic was told by those in attendance, as well as Manning’s campaign staff, that she was never fully briefed on exactly who she would be hanging out with.
To call the attendees of the gala part of the “alt-right” is a delicate category error. The event was held by the leaders of the “alt-lite” or “new right,” a loose coalition of pro-Trump internet celebrities and new media stuntmen who, while avowedly anti-white nationalist, nevertheless advance anti-black, anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant talking points. Mike Cernovich, the party’s headlining host, built his reputation as a rape apologist blogger, was once charged with sexual assault and also famously advanced the “pizzagate” conspiracy theory.
For many on the left watching from home, however, the damage was done. By attending the event at all, Manning set herself up for accusations of co-signing a gala of pseudo-fascists and white supremacists.
Those on the right, on the other hand, were quick to brag about how civil they’d been to Manning, even as her Twitter mentions filled to the brim with transphobic abuse. For those who always considered Manning a traitor, the photos were evidence that she was a pox on progressive politics all along. And for purportedly left-leaning conspiracy theorists, the event became a part of a broader plot.
Fairbanks told Mic she’s now wracked with guilt, blaming herself for the damage and for pulling a vulnerable friend past the cameras and straight into a public relations catastrophe.
But perhaps no one was hurt more than Manning. Muslim activist Linda Sarsour, who endorsed Manning’s senate campaign, told BuzzFeed’s Joe Bernstein that Manning “expressed extreme regret” to Sarsour for attending the party, and was on “the verge of tears.” Two individuals close to Manning confirmed to Mic that she’s deeply upset that there’d be any doubt as to her anti-fascist credibility.
But Manning’s new constituency — the anarchists, the transgender rights activists, the radically anti-fascist left — are unlikely to tolerate any further fraternizing with right-wing provocateurs. No more parties. No more game nights. Wintrich told Mic he wouldn’t fault Manning for distancing herself further from them.
Fairbanks told Mic she wanted to make clear was it was never her intention to try to convert Manning to the far right. Indeed, she said she never believed anything of the sort would be possible.
“She has more guts and backbone than anyone else I have ever known,” Fairbanks said. “The left should be proud to have her.”
It's a really interesting story about how Chelsea Manning got to where she is, what really led to her time in military prison, and how she's trusted people that she probably shouldn't be. I don't believe for a second that Manning is actually a hidden fascist right-winger. She's not some Peter Thiel Milo Yiannopoulos pet LGBTQ+ for the right to trot out and show just how "tolerant" they really are (hint: they're not). I will say it's possible she's too easily led by people she trusts.
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O'Keefe, Cernovich, and Posobiec are not our friends. I feel like they're setting her up to be a mole. If they got their hands on classified information, they'd be downright dangerous. This cannot be good, and it definitely won't end well. 
But I guess that's too much to ask for. 
or maybe Chelsea just is not very bright.............. 
If she's that easily led, she should not be running for office at all.
