,
This week we’re profiling New Mexicans who were arrested for attending the Capitol riot on January 6 and where their cases stand now. Today we’re profiling conservative blogger John Block, 24, from southern New Mexico. Block attended the riot, but records show he wasn’t arrested. A spokesperson for the FBI said they could neither confirm nor deny whether they had investigated Block. Social media posts from Block’s Facebook page place him outside the Capitol building on the day in question.
He previously told The Santa Fe New Mexican that he stood outside the building near a platform built for the Biden inauguration. Couy Griffin initially made similar claims until his own videos uncovered by The Paper. showed him inside restricted areas. Griffin was subsequently arrested and faces trial.
According to his website, Block volunteered for Trump’s 2015-’16 campaign. He served as the manager of one of Trump’s largest PACs, the Committee to Defend the President, during the 2020 election cycle. In January he flew to Washington, D.C., to attend the pro-Trump demonstration that turned violent after a mob stampeded the Capitol. Looking at Block’s social media the days after the riot, he says, “Keep on fighting for our great President. We will NEVER, EVER SURRENDER.”
“Independent Journalism” At Its Best
Last week The Santa Fe New Mexican profiled Block and his website, The Piñon Post, as the “unlikely conservative voice that needles New Mexico’s left.” According to Block, the mission of The Piñon Post is to “bring New Mexico the highest-quality independent news and conservative opinion on politics and current events.” Those “independent” headlines include “Welcome to 2022—The Year of the Lizard People” and “State-Funded Totalitarianism: Jabs Required for Events at The Pit” and “Far-left ABQ City Council Candidate Whines About Pastor Endorsing Opponent.”
Block, who remains convinced Donald Trump won the 2020 presidential election, has been called the unofficial spokesman of the Republican Party of New Mexico — given to writing incendiary things on politics and politicians that perhaps the party structure would not.
Daniel Chacon, Santa Fe New Mexican, Dec. 26, 2021
The New Mexican drew strong comments from readers online who suggested that they were elevating his fake news and Trump-style politics to the level of actual news.
In addition to his work at The Piñon Post, Block is a content editor for the conservative digital publishing site Pop Acta, which describes its work as “publishing news from a conservative perspective so that you can get the news free from liberal bias.” He’s also worked for Americans United for Life, an anti-abortion policy group in D.C. He holds an M.B.A. from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales.
Political Plans For the Future
Block told the New Mexican that he comes from a long line of politically active Democrats from northern New Mexico. Following those lines Block plans on running for State House District 51 in Alamogordo, but as a Republican. He’s launched his political campaign and is likely to run against incumbent Republican Rep. Rachel Black for the seat.
Block’s Facebook campaign page reposts most of his stories from The Piñon Post, with more personal commentary harkening back to the days of the Trump campaign. Some posts are aimed at Democrats like Rep. Liz Thompson (D-Bernalillo), whom he called “ugly inside and out.” Others refer to Governor Lujan Grisham as a “glutinous, hypocritical troll.” If elected, voters would have no doubt about Block’s views on COVID public health mandates, as he calls masking children “child abuse.” He also references COVID-19 as the “China virus.”
The general election for the New Mexico State Legislature is Nov. 8, 2022. The Paper. reached out to Block for comment on this story but did not hear back as of press time.