Dee Snider has blasted Jon Schaffer as a “piece of shit” who is “an embarrassment to the metal community.”
The TWISTED SISTER singer made his comment two days after the ICED EARTH guitarist pleaded guilty for his role in the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. As part of the plea deal, Jon entered into a cooperation agreement with the government.
Earlier today, Snider took to his Twitter to share a CNN article about Schaffer‘s guilty plea, and he included the following message: “THIS PIECE OF SHIT IS AN EMBARRASSMENT TO THE METAL COMMUNITY! First he shames us with his terrorist actions on in DC, and THEN he becomes a rat to his own people for a lighter sentence! MAN THE FUCK UP! Own your shit! If you do the crime, do the time!”
When one of Dee‘s Twitter followers defended Jon, writing, “At least he had the balls to stand up for what he believes in!!!!!”, Snider fired back with: “How do you feel about him being the first to plead guilty and cooperating with the Feds to lessen his sentence? Not what I call stand up.”
Dee added in a separate tweet: “Let me be clear on this: No one should ever rat out or throw their friends, families or cohorts under the bus. That’s pussy bullshit. It’s a problem with today’s society. Everyone is so ‘tough’ until they get caught. Then they are quick to blame everyone else.
“Hey, the authorities have always gotten a lot out of rats (my dad was a cop), but he still raised me to keep your mouth shut and suffer in silence. They call them rats for a reason. #snitchesgetstitches”.
Although Schaffer was initially charged with six crimes, including engaging in an act of physical violence and targeting police with bear spray, he pleaded guilty to only two charges: obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress; and trespassing on restricted grounds of the Capitol while armed with a deadly or dangerous weapon. The first charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, while the second carries up to a 10-year prison term.
According to CNN, prosecutors and Schaffer‘s attorneys agreed to recommend that he get between three and a half and four and a half years in prison, based on how fruitful his cooperation is with the government.
In his plea agreement, Schaffer acknowledged he is a founding lifetime member of the Oath Keepers, a large but loosely organized collection of individuals, some of whom are associated with militias.
In his plea agreement, Schaffer acknowledged that on January 6, 2021 he was in Washington to attend the “Stop The Steal” rally at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. to protest the results of the presidential election, which he believed were fraudulent. Schaffer wore a tactical vest and carried bear spray, a dangerous weapon and chemical irritant used to ward off bears. When the rally finished, Schaffer joined a large crowd that marched from the Ellipse to the Capitol, where a joint session of Congress, presided over by Vice President Michael Pence, was in session to certify the electoral college vote results. Shortly after 2:00 p.m., members of the mob forced entry into the Capitol building, disrupting the joint session and causing members of Congress and the Vice President to be evacuated from the House and Senate chambers.
In his plea agreement, Schaffer admitted that after arriving on Capitol grounds, he walked past barriers intended to restrict access to the public and to a set of locked doors on the Capitol’s west side. At approximately 2:40 p.m., Schaffer positioned himself at the front of a crowd that broke open a set of doors being guarded by four U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) officers wearing riot gear. Schaffer admitted to being among the first individuals to push past the damaged doors and into the Capitol building, forcing officers to retreat. Schaffer and others advanced toward five or six backpedaling USCP officers while members of the mob swelled inside of the Capitol and overwhelmed the officers. The officers ultimately deployed a chemical irritant to disperse the mob. Schaffer was among the people who were sprayed in the face, after which he exited while holding his own bear spray in his hands.
As part of the plea deal, Schaffer agreed to cooperate with investigators and potentially testify in related criminal cases, according to CNN. In return for Schaffer‘s assistance, the Justice Department might later urge the judge to show leniency during his sentencing.
As part of the agreement, the Justice Department has offered to sponsor Schaffer for the witness protection program.
The 53-year-old musician is the first Capitol riot defendant to reach a plea deal.
The Indiana chapter of the Oath Keepers distanced itself from Schaffer after his arrest, claiming he was not a member of the local group. But the national organization, which sells lifetime memberships for $1,200, has not commented on his alleged affiliation with the group.
At a November 2020 Donald Trump rally in Washington, D.C., Schaffer was videotaped walking behind a Florida couple, Kelly Meggs and Connie Meggs, who are accused of being among 10 members of the Oath Keepers to have played a leading role in the Capitol assault. According to federal authorities, Kelly and Connie Meggs plotted for weeks ahead of the attack, attended training sessions and recruited others. Kelly Meggs is the 52-year-old head of the Oath Keepers‘ chapter in Florida.
THIS PIECE OF SHIT IS AN EMBARRASSMENT TO THE METAL COMMUNITY! First he shames us with his terrorist actions on in DC, and THEN he becomes a rat to his own people for a lighter sentence! MAN THE FUCK UP! Own your shit! If you do the crime, do the time!https://t.co/jTo6EFVSDN
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021
How do you feel about him being the first to plead guilty and cooperating with the Feds to lessen his sentence? Not what I call stand up. https://t.co/795UaeLvAn
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021
Let me be clear on this: No one should ever rat out or throw their friends, families or cohorts under the bus. That’s pussy bullshit. It’s a problem with today’s society. Everyone is so “tough” until they get caught. Then they are quick to blame everyone else. https://t.co/tkSJVuloIf
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021
Hey, the authorities have always gotten a lot out of rats (my dad was a cop), but he still raised me to keep your mouth shut and suffer in silence. They call them rats for a reason. #snitchesgetstitches https://t.co/o2oxIhbjfG
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021
If he’s coming forward because he can’t live with what he witnessed, that is great. I’m pretty sure he is just trying to save his own ass. https://t.co/n18oKEr1F0
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021
And you know they didn’t torture him; he volunteered! https://t.co/7QrcSbzS4Z
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021
It’s not criminals. PEOPLE need to have honor and integrity. They need to be trustworthy and true to their word. You don’t drag others down with you when you are in trouble or having a tough time. It’s just not right. https://t.co/mZlBVG4p0h
— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 18, 2021