Andy Ngo And Patriot Prayer Have An ‘Understanding’ To Protect Each Other, Says Undercover Member
The integrity of conservative journalist Andy Ngo has been called into question after he was caught on video with the right-wing activist group Patriot Prayer as they reportedly planned an attack on Antifa, per The Inquisitr. Ngo purportedly spotlights violence from the left and the militant anti-fascist group, in particular.
In a recent report by The Portland Mercury, the extent of Ngo’s involvement with Patriot Prayer is further revealed. An undercover member of the group, Ben, marched alongside the group in nearly every Portland demonstration and shone a light on how it operates. He also paints a damning portrait of Ngo, who appears to be tighter with the right-wing activists he documents more than he has led on.
According to Ben, when Patriot Prayer was planning the attack on Antifa during May Day celebrations at Cider Riot bar — which is now suing Patriot Prayer — Ngo was present and didn’t film any of the conversations.
“He overheard everything and said nothing,” he said.
Ben claims that Ngo is a grifter and says that he never films Patriot Prayer discussing strategies or motives, and he only starts filming when Antifa are present.
“There’s an understanding that Patriot Prayer protects him and he protects them.”
"When I joined the military, I signed an oath to defend the constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic," says the US Navy veteran who infiltrated Patriot Prayer. "There's no expiration date on that oath." https://t.co/qeNjkUeaEH
— Alex Zielinski (@alex_zee) August 26, 2019
Ben isn’t the only one that thinks Ngo is a grifter. Author Arun Gupta — in a piece in Jacobin Magazine — claims that Ngo calculatedly sows harassment and violence against the left using his narratives of right-wing victimization that play to the supposed bigotry of his audience. In addition, author Shane Burlet, who wrote Fascism Today: What It Is and How to End It, also believes that Ngo knows exactly what he’s doing.
“One way to think of Andy Ngo is he is part of a far-right mediasphere that creates victimization narratives of conservatism and profit from it,” he said. “It’s all about the embattled American man who is under siege at every turn, whether its trans children, immigrant criminals, anchor babies, or dangerous college campuses.’They are all out to destroy us and our values.'”
“It’s an entire infrastructure that’s moved from commentary like National Review to populist media hucksters drumming up a controversy,” he added.
As for Ben, his video has helped Portland Police Bureau (PPB) arrest Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson and five other members of the group that were part of the Cider Riot. Although Ben says he does fear for his safety now that his identity will soon be public, he believes that his undercover operation is a “what patriotism looks like.”
