Meet Roger Stone: Possibly The Most Dangerous Man In Politics
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – There is a dark side of campaign politics that not a lot of people see. One of its legendary practitioners is right here in South Florida – Roger Stone.
Some call him the most dangerous man in politics.
An avid Donald Trump supporter, he is planning what he's calls "Days of Rage" during the Republican National Convention.
"It's an uprising. The Trump campaign is an insurrection. It's an insurgency. It's a revolt against the ruling class. And that is what the march on Cleveland is all about," he told CBS4's Jim DeFede.
DeFede caught up with Stone at his lair in Oakland Park.
He had a veritable shrine to his mentor, Richard Nixon.
"This is the tour that I was on for Richard Nixon in 1968 they give you those at the end of the campaign," he explained to DeFede.
Stone has spent his entire life prowling the dark alleys of politics working on the presidential campaigns of Ronald Reagan, Bob Dole and George W. Bush.
Now his focus is on getting his longtime friend Trump the nomination.
"What happens outside the hall is just as important as what happens inside the hall," Stone said.
Stone is calling it a "Stop the Steal Rally," because he claims Cruz and others in the GOP are plotting to take the nomination away from Trump at the convention.
"The voices of the people who voted in the primaries have a right to be heard. These delegates didn't elect themselves, we elected them," he said. "We need a show of force to demonstrate to the politicians that the voters' votes in the primaries cannot be just disallowed. It's not the party leaders that make this choice, it's the people."
"Aren't you trying to intimidate those delegates on the convention floor?" DeFede followed up.
"First of all, we are not dealing with Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm here. These are hardened politicians and they know what they are doing. No I think we have an absolute right to address our democratically elected delegates. They shouldn't be allowed to hide if what they are doing is politically and legally tricky," he responded.
As soon as Stone announced his plans for the rally, cable news blew up.
"For Roger stone to now say that he is going to give out the hotel room of delegates - it's a mob," Katie Pavlich told Megyn Kelly on Fox News' "The Kelly File."
"That is a clear threat of violence," Brent Bozell said on CNN.
But Stone insists they are wrong.
"This is not about violence," he told DeFede.
"But who came up with the hashtag, 'Days of Rage?'" DeFede questioned him.
"I did because our people are very, very angry. We are angry," he said.
"Okay, well you can see where it becomes a fine line," DeFede responded.
"Well, first of all I think you're nitpicking. It's the stop the steal rally every time we've talked about it in the media we are talking about peaceful, non-violent protest. But in numbers there's strength," he said.
Stone believes Republican leaders are using "Trojan Horse" delegates to thwart Trump's nomination.
A Trojan Horse delegate is one that is chosen to be a Trump supporter, but in fact the party leaders know these delegates will break away from Trump as soon as they are able to and will vote for rules at the convention that hurt Trump.
"So it is there that the game will be afoot, it's there that the kingmakers plan the big steal and the answer is thousands and thousands of people outside protesting that," Stone said.
Stone said he will provide the names, hotels and even room numbers for the delegates he thinks may become disloyal to Trump.
Stone said he has no official or even unofficial role with the Trump campaign. He is doing this on his own.
For more on Campaign 2016, click here.
