Elkhart County Commissioner Brad Rogers says he separated from Oath Keepers eight years ago

But Rogers, who left the organization eight years ago, has never tried to hide his early affiliation with the Oath Keepers, an organization that played a key role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. 

“The original stated mission of Oath Keepers centered around non-violent non-compliance with orders that violated the rights of all individuals,” Rogers wrote on his web page.  

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“However, Oath Keepers leaders began to go on record that there will be ‘blood in the streets’ and began promoting or encouraging civil war,” he wrote, even though its original bylaws banned membership to those advocating “the overthrow of the government.”

Rogers further wrote that he and countless others left the organization as it moved away from its original intent, and he spoke out against the attack on the Capital the day it occurred because free speech and protest do not include “rioting and tumultuous behavior” causing property damage and injuries.