Oath Keepers head Rhodes on stand in Jan. 6 sedition trial

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes has taken the witness stand in his seditious conspiracy trial and told jurors he’s a patriotic American. Rhodes is trying to counter allegations his far-right extremist group planned an armed rebellion at the Capitol to stop the transfer of presidential power. Rhodes began testifying Friday after prosecutors spent weeks laying out their case against him and four others accused of a violent plot to keep Joe Biden out of the White House. Rhodes is expected to argue his actions leading up to Jan. 6, 2021, were in anticipation of orders the Texas resident expected from then-President Donald Trump. Those orders never came.