Major Vendors Connected to Insurrection Groups Must Sever Ties to Maintain Standards for Use of Their Services

Major Vendors Connected to Insurrection Groups Must Sever Ties to Maintain Standards for Use of Their Services

Major Vendors Connected To Insurrection Groups Must Sever Ties To Maintain Standards For Use Of Their Services Summary: Several vendors, including the domain registrar and host GoDaddy.com and the e-commerce platform Shopify, provide services to organizations closely involved with the January 6th Capitol Riot. These groups, and the associated companies, include: • Turning Point USA, whose website is registered by GoDaddy.com and whose online store is "powered" by Shopify. Turning Point USA helped organize the January 6th rallies that led to the riot, with the organization's leader even providing 80 buses to transport Trump supporters. • The Rule of Law Defense Fund, the fundraising arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association, whose website is hosted by Linode LLC and registered by GoDaddy.com, sent robocalls urging Trump supporters to march on the Capitol the day before the Capitol Riot occurred. • Women For America First, whose website is hosted by Google and registered by GoDaddy.com, urged a "caravan" of Trump supporters to attend the January 6th rally that led to the Capitol riot. In November 2020, Women For America First promoted the protests of white nationalist groups seeking to challenge the election results. • Tea Party Patriots, whose website is hosted by Fastly and Pantheon and registered by GoDaddy.com, was listed among the groups participating in the January 6th March to Save America Rally. • The Phyllis Schlafly Eagles, whose website is hosted by New Dream Network and registered by GoDaddy.com, was listed among the groups participating in the January 6th March to Save America Rally. • Brian Gibson, the pastor of HIS Church, whose website is hosted and registered by GoDaddy.com, took part in an event "billed as a combination worship service and rally for Trump" the day before the January 6th Capitol riot. Gibson had previously spent a month on a national pro-Trump bus tour. • The Eighty Percent Coalition, whose website is hosted and registered by GoDaddy.com, was founded just weeks before the January 6th rally and was named on permits for a November 2020 Pro- trump Rally featuring controversial Trump supporters Marjorie Taylor-Greene and Sebastian Gorka. • The Oath Keepers, whose online store is hosted and registered by GoDaddy.com, has several members charged with conspiracy to commit federal crimes for organizing individuals who stormed the Capitol. • Moms For America, whose online store is "powered" by Shopify, was among "coalition partners" for the March to Save America Rally and held a rally the day before where an Illinois congresswoman claimed “Hitler was right." In all, GoDaddy.com is the registrar for the websites of eight organizations involved with the events leading up to the January 6th Capitol riots, and the host of three organizations. Shopify serves as the e-commerce platform for two involved organizations. Other major companies, including Google, Linode, and Fastly, host the websites of other insurrectionist groups. GoDaddy.com and Shopify have both shown a past willingness to separate themselves from organizations involved in promoting and amplifying hateful rhetoric. In October 2018, GoDaddy ended its relationship as the domain registrar of a far-right social media site, Gab, after it was found to be in violation of its terms of service following a mass shooting perpetuated by one of its users. In January 2021, Shopify was quick to 1 shut down two online stores operated by Trump for violating its acceptable use policy by condoning political violence and promoting organizations threatening violence – organizations such as those named in this document. GoDaddy, Shopify, and other vendors should consider whether it is in their businesses’ best interest to provide services to organizations actively involved in the Capitol insurrection and whether that aligns with a standard of acceptable use of their services and products. GoDaddy.com Is The Domain Registrar For The Turning Point USA Website While Shopify "Powers" Its Online Merchandise Store – Turning Point Was Heavily Involved In The Rally Leading To The January 6th Capitol Riot, With its Leader, Charlie Kirk, Going As Far As Providing 80 Buses To Transport Supporters. GoDaddy.com Is The Domain Registrar For Turning Point's Website, While Its Ultimate Webhost Was Not Immediately Apparent Due To The Use Of Cloudflare. GoDaddy.com, LLC Serves As The Domain Registrar For The Turning Point USA Website, Tpusa.com. [DomainTools, accessed 02/10/21] Turning Point USA Uses Cloudflare, Which Makes Their Ultimate Web Host Difficult To Ascertain. • Cloudflare Is "Not A Hosting Provider," Instead Offering Services To "Enhance Security, Performance, And Reliability Of Anything Connected To The Internet." "More than just Content Delivery (CDN) services, customers rely on Cloudflare’s global network to enhance security, performance, and reliability of anything connected to the Internet. […] Cloudflare is not a hosting provider." [Cloudflare.com, accessed 02/12/21] 2 [HostingChecker.com, accessed 02/10/21] Turning Point's Online Store Is Operated Through Shopify. Turning Point USA's Online Store, ShopTPUSA.com. Is "Powered" By Shopify. [Turning Point USA, accessed 02/10/21] College Conservative-Focused Group Turning Point USA Helped Organize The January 6th Rally Which Led To The Insurrection. Turning Point Action, An Arm Of Turning Point USA Led By TPUSA’s Founder, Was Listed As An Organizer Of January 6th’s Washington DC Rally. “Charlie Kirk, a firebrand conservative activist and staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, is preparing to unveil a nonprofit that will allow his organization to campaign against Democrats during the 2020 election season. CNBC discovered Kirk’s new organization, called Turning Point Action, after reviewing an embedded donor link that shows the soon-to-be-finalized group targeting Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.” [CNBC, 05/20/19] [Documented, 01/11/21] 3 Turning Point USA Is A Conservative Group Focused Which Seeks To Organize College Aged Conservatives. “In 2012, Kirk founded Turning Point USA, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit grassroots organization that encourages conservative college students to rally for causes such as free market policies. The Internal Revenue Service prohibits 501(c)(3)s to participate, either directly or indirectly, in political campaigns.” [CNBC, 05/20/19] Turning Point USA And Turning Point Action Founder And Leader Charlie Kirk Prominently Promoted The More Than 80 Buses They Organized To Bring Supporters To The Rally. [Twitter Archive, 01/04/21] Linode, LLC Hosts The Website Of The Republican Attorneys General Association, Whose Subsidiary, Rule Of Law Defense Fund, Made Robocalls Urging Trump Supporters To March On The Capitol. The Republican Attorneys General Association's Website Is Hosted By Linode, LLC, While GoDaddy.Com Serves As Its Domain Registrar. GoDaddy.com, LLC Serves As The Domain Registrar For The Republican Attorney General Association Website, RepublicanAGs.com. [DomainTools, accessed 02/10/21] 4 Linode, LCC Serves As The Webhost For The Republican Attorney General Association Website. [HostingChecker.com, accessed 02/10/21] The Rule Of Law Defense Fund (RLDF), A Fundraising Arm Of The Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA), Made Robocalls Urging A March On The Capitol The Day Before A Deadly Pro-Trump Attempted Coup Occurred There. The Rule Of Law Defense Fund (RLDF), A “Fundraising Arm Of The Republican Attorneys General Association [RAGA],” Sent Robocalls Urging People To March On The Capitol The Day Before The Riots Occurred. “An arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association, a national group representing the top law enforcement officers in their states, sent out robocalls encouraging people to march to the U.S. Capitol the day before the building was stormed by a pro-Trump mob. [...] The calls, which did not advocate violence or suggest the building should be breached, was sent out by the Rule of Law Defense Fund, a fundraising arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association. The groups share funding, staff and office space in Washington, D.C.” [NBC News, 01/08/21] RLDF Was Also Listed Among The Rally’s Participating Organizations. “A website set up to promote the rally that preceded the Capitol incursion lists the Rule of Law Defense Fund as one of the participating organizations. The site has since been taken down.” [NBC News, 01/08/21] Google Hosts The Website Of Women For America First, Whose Chair Was Named On Permits For The Rally Leading To The Capitol Riot And Promoted White Supremacists Protests In November 2020 Challenging The Electoral Results. Women For America First's Website Is Hosted By Google, While Godaddy.com Serves As Its Domain Registrar. GoDaddy.com, LLC Serves As The Domain Registrar For The Women For America First Website, WomenForAmericaFirst.org. 5 [DomainTools, accessed 02/10/21] Google Serves As The Webhost For The Women For America First Website. [HostingChecker.com, accessed 02/10/21] Women For America First Chair, Amy Kremer, Was Named On The Permit For The “Save America” Rally. Women For America First Was Listed Among The “Coalition Partners” And Groups Participating In The March To Save America. [Documented, 01/07/21] Amy Kremer Is The Chair Of Women For America First And Was Also Listed On The Permit For The January 6th “March For America” Rally. “Women for America First is chaired by Amy Kremer, a longtime political operative that was once the head of the Tea Party Express, an organization that was created to support the conservative Tea Party movement.” [CNBC, 01/08/21] Women For America First’s Leadership Urged A “Caravan” Carrying Supporters To The January 6th Rally Which Led To The Insurrection Women For America First Is Chaired By Amy Kremer. “Women for America First is chaired by Amy Kremer, a longtime political operative that was once the head of the Tea Party Express, an organization that was created to support the conservative Tea Party movement.

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