Coast Guard member had hit list of Democrats

A U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant is set to appear in federal court Thursday after his arrest last week in connection with a domestic terror plot. Christopher Paul Hasson allegedly drafted an email in June 2017 in which he said he was “dreaming of a way to kill almost every last person on the earth” and pondering how he might be able to acquire anthrax and toxins to create botulism or a deadly influenza, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Maryland.

Federal agents found 15 firearms and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition inside Hasson’s basement apartment in Silver Spring, Md. Hasson sent himself a draft letter to a neo-Nazi leader in September 2017 in which he “identified himself as a White Nationalist for over 30 years and advocated for ‘focused violence’ in order to establish a white homeland,” according to prosecutors. Agents tracked Hasson’s online browsing history and found searches in February 2018 for “most liberal senators,” “do senators have ss [secret service] protection,” and “are supreme court justices protected.” He also sought information on pro-Russian and neo-Nazi literature.

According to the court filing, Hasson’s hit list on a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet included prominent Democrats such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Kamala Harris of California, and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Other names on the list included John Podesta, Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign chairman; Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Maxine Waters, D-Calif.; former Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-Texas; MSNBC hosts Chris Hayes and Joe Scarborough; and CNN hosts Chris Cuomo and Van Jones.

Prosecutors have requested that Hasson remain in detention, citing his “obvious danger to the community.”