Details are still emerging but the cops were right on it. It was Bourbon St so there were a lot of beat cops walking around but you have to wonder what the death toll might have been if he would have gotten out of that truck and opened up on the crowd with a gun.
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018) The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
Details are still emerging but the cops were right on it. It was Bourbon St so there were a lot of beat cops walking around but you have to wonder what the death toll might have been if he would have gotten out of that truck and opened up on the crowd with a gun.
curious now, how they shift barrier replacement operations and if that wasnt going on, does the perp simply jump out and run through as many mags as possible?
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Details are still emerging but the cops were right on it. It was Bourbon St so there were a lot of beat cops walking around but you have to wonder what the death toll might have been if he would have gotten out of that truck and opened up on the crowd with a gun.
The ‘Nawlins sheriff stating during a presser that the truck was rented and they were trying to determine how he obtained it, struck me. No mention of the firearms, a hand gun and an AR type rifle, and how he obtained those. I guess because we all know, as a “responsible” firearm possessor he got them from another “responsible” gun owner, which is taken for granted and not worth mentioning or investigating. But how he rented a truck? Drop everything, leave no stone unturned!
0
Choccoloccotide
A grass shack nailed to a pinewood floor Posts: 1,178
Can you stop with the incessant screenshot spamming of every thread like you're a breaking news organization? All of these threads just end up as screen grabs from you and Threads posts from Mick. I'm not on X or social media so I don't need that experience here.
Then go somewhere else or do the famously funny “ignore”…. It’s not about YOU.
Keep it up sheky, the nonconformists enjoy the your contribution to this ever changing Forum…
Thanks, Linda. I did get a chuckle from the poster above who admonished me to "Just fit in..."! How rock 'n roll is that?! Ha ha ha!
Right on Sheck and Linda 💯! Conformity is the God of these gaggle of leftists that post regularly on AMT. If they were in positions of power, they’d have us all in a gulag for sure.
Can you stop with the incessant screenshot spamming of every thread like you're a breaking news organization? All of these threads just end up as screen grabs from you and Threads posts from Mick. I'm not on X or social media so I don't need that experience here.
Then go somewhere else or do the famously funny “ignore”…. It’s not about YOU.
Keep it up sheky, the nonconformists enjoy the your contribution to this ever changing Forum…
Thanks, Linda. I did get a chuckle from the poster above who admonished me to "Just fit in..."! How rock 'n roll is that?! Ha ha ha!
Right on Sheck and Linda 💯! Conformity is the God of these gaggle of leftists that post regularly on AMT. If they were in positions of power, they’d have us all in a gulag for sure.
LOL...you voted for a draft dodging, fake hair, fake teeth, fake wife, moron who always talks about jailing anyone who has called him out for his corruption. Laughable stuff from you all today.
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018) The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
Can you stop with the incessant screenshot spamming of every thread like you're a breaking news organization? All of these threads just end up as screen grabs from you and Threads posts from Mick. I'm not on X or social media so I don't need that experience here.
Then go somewhere else or do the famously funny “ignore”…. It’s not about YOU.
Keep it up sheky, the nonconformists enjoy the your contribution to this ever changing Forum…
Thanks, Linda. I did get a chuckle from the poster above who admonished me to "Just fit in..."! How rock 'n roll is that?! Ha ha ha!
Right on Sheck and Linda 💯! Conformity is the God of these gaggle of leftists that post regularly on AMT. If they were in positions of power, they’d have us all in a gulag for sure.
Can you stop with the incessant screenshot spamming of every thread like you're a breaking news organization? All of these threads just end up as screen grabs from you and Threads posts from Mick. I'm not on X or social media so I don't need that experience here.
Then go somewhere else or do the famously funny “ignore”…. It’s not about YOU.
Keep it up sheky, the nonconformists enjoy the your contribution to this ever changing Forum…
Thanks, Linda. I did get a chuckle from the poster above who admonished me to "Just fit in..."! How rock 'n roll is that?! Ha ha ha!
Right on Sheck and Linda 💯! Conformity is the God of these gaggle of leftists that post regularly on AMT. If they were in positions of power, they’d have us all in a gulag for sure.
I hear ya', Chocco. I've come to understand why the libs feel so afraid, insecure and powerless all the time. After all, they (we) don't even know who has been governing us the last four years. It obviously wasn't Joe Biden. Probably was a conglomerate of Obama, Valerie Jarrett, Pelosi, Schumer and who knows who else? Just 18 days until America's REAL CHOICE for president returns - Donald J. Trump! Halleluja!
Anyone think POOTWH’s threats to make Canada the 51st state, take Greenland and the Panama Canal back are extreme? You know, it emboldens and legitimizes other authoritarians. How about Putin on the ritz taking Alaska back? How would you like them apples? Maybe Finland? All of Ukraine?
Nice to see the gulag lovers cheering on POOTWH. You’ll rue the day.
Can you stop with the incessant screenshot spamming of every thread like you're a breaking news organization? All of these threads just end up as screen grabs from you and Threads posts from Mick. I'm not on X or social media so I don't need that experience here.
Then go somewhere else or do the famously funny “ignore”…. It’s not about YOU.
Keep it up sheky, the nonconformists enjoy the your contribution to this ever changing Forum…
Thanks, Linda. I did get a chuckle from the poster above who admonished me to "Just fit in..."! How rock 'n roll is that?! Ha ha ha!
I always say it, this place is the gift that keeps on giving… Happy New year to you and GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!
That's right, Linda. And we all pay the same $35. per year for the privilege of posting here (as well as other stuff). For the record, this past November marked my 24th year as a member of Ten Club, so I'm now on year 25!
I didn't even notice the "Forum" section until probably ten years ago and didn't have the time or inclination to post back then. It wasn't until I happened upon the AMT category around 2016 and saw the extreme vitriol, un-hinged hatred and outright perversity directed at citizen Donald J. Trump that I became encouraged to join in.
My current life affords me plenty of time to visit these Forums and I enjoy it very much! Happy New Year, Linda, and anyone else you wants a happy new year! It's your choice - if you want it.
You are making a HUGE difference. This safe space of all thing LEFT was due for a correction. Just like our country.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Ha ha...great comments, fellas! Bravo! Gern, I'm pretty sure Linda already has a man in her life, but I appreciate the notion. And Mickey, I think you've got a great bumper sticker or t-shirt concept there! Imagine a t-shirt with "Pearl Jam" on the front right pocket and "Bringing Lovers Together For 34 Years" across the back! Brilliant. I think you should submit the idea to Santos when he returns to the shop next week. Good luck with it!
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Fire vehicles surround the valet area where a Tesla
Cybertruck caught fire at the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on
Jan. 1.
David Becker for the Washington Post/Getty Images
Authorities have identified the driver of the Cybertruck that
exploded in front of the Trump hotel in Las Vegas as 37-year-old Master
Sgt. Matthew Alan Livelsberger. In a news briefing Thursday afternoon,
police say they still don't have 100 percent confirmation because he was
"burned beyond recognition" in the Jan. 1 blast. They're awaiting DNA
tests to confirm his identity.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police
Sheriff Kevin McMahill says Livelsberger sustained a gunshot wound to
the head prior to the Cybertuck detonating; investigators believe it was
self inflicted.
Officials found several items in the vehicle
including multiple firearms, fireworks, a military ID, an iPhone and
several credit cards. The FBI and local law enforcement officials are
still looking for a motive.
Livelsberger was an active-duty Special Operations soldier with
the U.S. Army. Officials noted similarities with 42-year-old Shamsud-Din
Jabbar, the man who drove a pickup truck onto the sidewalk in New
Orleans, killing at least 14 and injuring dozens more on New Year's Day.
McMahill said both men served at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, though
there's no indication they served in the same unit. They also both
served in Afghanistan in 2009, and they both used the rental car app
Turo to rent the vehicles used in these attacks. McMahill said details
on additional parallels are unknown. Law enforcement and intelligence
officials are investigating any potential connection between the two
incidents.
Livelsberger served in the active-duty Army from
January 2006 to March 2011. He then joined the National Guard from March
2011 to July 2012, followed by the Army Reserve from July 2012 to
December 2012.
U.S. Army Special Operations Command confirmed that Livelsberger was on approved leave at the time of his death.
On
Wednesday, Las Vegas police said that crews pulled gasoline canisters,
camp fuel canisters and large firework mortars from the back of the
Cybertruck. The explosion, which was caught on video, also injured seven
people.
Police said the Cybertruck was rented in Colorado.
Authorities were able to trace the vehicle through Tesla charging
stations to see that it arrived in Las Vegas about an hour before the
explosion. Authorities called the incident "isolated."
Jeremy Schwartz, acting special agent in charge of the FBI in Las
Vegas, said the agency was working closely with area law enforcement to
learn more about the explosion. The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force was
working to determine whether the explosion was an act of terrorism.
A
source familiar with Livelsberger's background who was not authorized
to speak publicly on the matter tells NPR's Tom Bowman that Livelsberger
was deployed five times to Afghanistan on combat missions. He had not
been deployed for the past 12 months.
Livelsberger was awarded a Bronze Star for valor, an Army
commendation for valor, as well as a combat infantry badge, the source
said.
Correction Jan. 2, 2025
The Jan. 1 truck attack in New Orleans killed at least 14 people, not 15 as a previous version of this story said.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
will put this here, but frankly, most truckers need to step out of the truck for a while. this could have been a shipper or receiver set this guy off.....
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Read more
The active-duty Green Beret who was driving a Tesla Cybertruck that blew up outside the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on New Year’s Day “was a 100 percent patriot,” his bewildered uncle said Thursday.
Matthew Livelsberger, 37, was “like a Rambo-type, for lack of a better word,” Dean Livelsberger told The Independent.
Dean, whose older brother is Livelsberger’s father, Roger, himself an Air Force veteran who served in Vietnam, said his nephew “loved the Army.”
10.5K
Keir Starmer says things are 'worse than we ever imagined' in first keynote address as PM
“He used to have all patriotic stuff on Facebook, he was 100 percent loving the country,” he continued. “He loved Trump, and he was always a very, very patriotic soldier, a patriotic American. It’s one of the reasons he was in Special Forces for so many years. It wasn’t just one tour of duty.”
open image in gallery
Matthew Livelsberger, the man believed to have detonated a Tesla outside Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel, was a Green Beret (LinkedIn)
Dean Livelsberger said he was aware of the explosion in Vegas, but had not yet been made aware that Matt, as he called him, had been named as the culprit until The Independent contacted him for comment. At first, Dean assumed the explosion had been caused by “one of those big lithium batteries that short-circuited or something,” he said. He was relieved that the blast only caused seven minor injuries and didn’t kill anyone else. But, he added, the amateurish construction of the explosive device, an array of propane tanks, fireworks and camping fuel, left him with a slew of additional questions.
“Matt was a very skilled warrior, and he would be able to make — if it was him, and if he did this — he would’ve been able to make a more sophisticated explosive than using propane tanks and camping fuel. He was what you might call a ‘supersoldier.’ If you ever read about the things he was awarded, and the experience he had, some of it doesn’t make sense, when he had the skills and ability to make something more, let’s say, ‘efficient.’ His skills were enormous from what he had been taught in the military.”
With Livelsberger’s skills, his uncle suggested, his nephew “could have fashioned a bomb that would have obliterated half of that hotel if he seriously wanted to hurt others.”
“Think of Oklahoma City,” he said. “McVeigh was just a normal soldier. Not a Tier 1 operator like Matt.”
Livelsberger was in the U.S. Army for 19 years, 18 of which were in the elite Special Forces. He was currently stationed in Germany, and was on leave in Colorado Springs when he rented the Cybertruck and drove to Nevada, law enforcement sources said.
open image in gallery
Livelsberger’s Tesla Cybertruck seen driving through Las Vegas before exploding at a Trump hotel (Las Vegas Metro police)
The truck blew up just a few hours after Shamsud-Din Jabbar rammed a truck into New Year’s Day revelers in New Orleans killing at least 15 people. Jabbar, 42, was also an Army veteran who was posted to the same base as Livelsberger, and also served in Afghanistan around the same time that Livelsberger did. Investigators were looking into a possible link between the two men, who both rented their vehicles through the same carshare service, Turo, but so far they have found no “direct” connection between the two.
At a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said the coroner’s office found that Livelsberger “had sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to the detonation of the vehicle.” And while the investigation is still ongoing, he believed Livelsberger’s actions indicated “a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately thereafter,” rather than a “suicide mission.”
Livelsberger’s military ID and passport were found inside the Cybertruck, as well as a Desert Eagle .50 caliber semi-automatic pistol and an SLR Rifleworks B30. Both weapons, and Livelsberger himself, were burnt “almost beyond recognition,” according to McMahill. He said investigators also recovered a cache of fireworks, along with an iPhone, a smartwatch, and several credit cards in Livelsberger’s name.
open image in gallery
Burned fireworks found inside Livelsberger’s Tesla (Las Vegas Metro police)
Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans of the FBI’s Las Vegas Division said agents had tracked the vehicle from Denver, through Tesla charging stations in Arizona and New Mexico, before it arrived in Vegas at 7:29 a.m. on Wednesday.
Kenny Cooper, assistant special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms’ San Francisco Division, said it remains unclear how the explosives were detonated. He noted that everything used was consumer-grade, such as the camping fuel and propane tanks, in addition to “some explosive targets that can be purchased at any sporting goods store.” Both of the firearms in the Cybertruck had been legally purchased two days earlier, on December 30. Cooper also noted, echoing Dean Livelsberger, that “the level of sophistication is not what we would expect from an individual with this type of military experience.”
Livelsberger divorced his first wife, who now lives in South Florida with her new husband, several years ago. Livelsberger shares a newborn with his new partner, and in September posted a picture on Facebook of himself cradling the infant in his arms, according to Dean. Over the past few months, an array of photos Livelsberger posted from Germany, including pictures of himself proposing to his partner, and the ring he gave her, have “disappeared,” his uncle said.
Livelsberger’s father, who was unreachable on Thursday, was married “several times,” and had children with “a couple of different women,” according to Dean Livelsberger, who has been semi-estranged from his brother for years.
At the same time, Dean said, “Matt wasn’t estranged from the family at all. Everyone thought the world of Matt.”
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Read more
The active-duty Green Beret who was driving a Tesla Cybertruck that blew up outside the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on New Year’s Day “was a 100 percent patriot,” his bewildered uncle said Thursday.
Matthew Livelsberger, 37, was “like a Rambo-type, for lack of a better word,” Dean Livelsberger told The Independent.
Dean, whose older brother is Livelsberger’s father, Roger, himself an Air Force veteran who served in Vietnam, said his nephew “loved the Army.”
10.5K
Keir Starmer says things are 'worse than we ever imagined' in first keynote address as PM
“He used to have all patriotic stuff on Facebook, he was 100 percent loving the country,” he continued. “He loved Trump, and he was always a very, very patriotic soldier, a patriotic American. It’s one of the reasons he was in Special Forces for so many years. It wasn’t just one tour of duty.”
open image in gallery
Matthew Livelsberger, the man believed to have detonated a Tesla outside Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel, was a Green Beret (LinkedIn)
Dean Livelsberger said he was aware of the explosion in Vegas, but had not yet been made aware that Matt, as he called him, had been named as the culprit until The Independent contacted him for comment. At first, Dean assumed the explosion had been caused by “one of those big lithium batteries that short-circuited or something,” he said. He was relieved that the blast only caused seven minor injuries and didn’t kill anyone else. But, he added, the amateurish construction of the explosive device, an array of propane tanks, fireworks and camping fuel, left him with a slew of additional questions.
“Matt was a very skilled warrior, and he would be able to make — if it was him, and if he did this — he would’ve been able to make a more sophisticated explosive than using propane tanks and camping fuel. He was what you might call a ‘supersoldier.’ If you ever read about the things he was awarded, and the experience he had, some of it doesn’t make sense, when he had the skills and ability to make something more, let’s say, ‘efficient.’ His skills were enormous from what he had been taught in the military.”
With Livelsberger’s skills, his uncle suggested, his nephew “could have fashioned a bomb that would have obliterated half of that hotel if he seriously wanted to hurt others.”
“Think of Oklahoma City,” he said. “McVeigh was just a normal soldier. Not a Tier 1 operator like Matt.”
Livelsberger was in the U.S. Army for 19 years, 18 of which were in the elite Special Forces. He was currently stationed in Germany, and was on leave in Colorado Springs when he rented the Cybertruck and drove to Nevada, law enforcement sources said.
open image in gallery
Livelsberger’s Tesla Cybertruck seen driving through Las Vegas before exploding at a Trump hotel (Las Vegas Metro police)
The truck blew up just a few hours after Shamsud-Din Jabbar rammed a truck into New Year’s Day revelers in New Orleans killing at least 15 people. Jabbar, 42, was also an Army veteran who was posted to the same base as Livelsberger, and also served in Afghanistan around the same time that Livelsberger did. Investigators were looking into a possible link between the two men, who both rented their vehicles through the same carshare service, Turo, but so far they have found no “direct” connection between the two.
At a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said the coroner’s office found that Livelsberger “had sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to the detonation of the vehicle.” And while the investigation is still ongoing, he believed Livelsberger’s actions indicated “a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately thereafter,” rather than a “suicide mission.”
Livelsberger’s military ID and passport were found inside the Cybertruck, as well as a Desert Eagle .50 caliber semi-automatic pistol and an SLR Rifleworks B30. Both weapons, and Livelsberger himself, were burnt “almost beyond recognition,” according to McMahill. He said investigators also recovered a cache of fireworks, along with an iPhone, a smartwatch, and several credit cards in Livelsberger’s name.
open image in gallery
Burned fireworks found inside Livelsberger’s Tesla (Las Vegas Metro police)
Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans of the FBI’s Las Vegas Division said agents had tracked the vehicle from Denver, through Tesla charging stations in Arizona and New Mexico, before it arrived in Vegas at 7:29 a.m. on Wednesday.
Kenny Cooper, assistant special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms’ San Francisco Division, said it remains unclear how the explosives were detonated. He noted that everything used was consumer-grade, such as the camping fuel and propane tanks, in addition to “some explosive targets that can be purchased at any sporting goods store.” Both of the firearms in the Cybertruck had been legally purchased two days earlier, on December 30. Cooper also noted, echoing Dean Livelsberger, that “the level of sophistication is not what we would expect from an individual with this type of military experience.”
Livelsberger divorced his first wife, who now lives in South Florida with her new husband, several years ago. Livelsberger shares a newborn with his new partner, and in September posted a picture on Facebook of himself cradling the infant in his arms, according to Dean. Over the past few months, an array of photos Livelsberger posted from Germany, including pictures of himself proposing to his partner, and the ring he gave her, have “disappeared,” his uncle said.
Livelsberger’s father, who was unreachable on Thursday, was married “several times,” and had children with “a couple of different women,” according to Dean Livelsberger, who has been semi-estranged from his brother for years.
At the same time, Dean said, “Matt wasn’t estranged from the family at all. Everyone thought the world of Matt.”
The evangelicals and white supremacists believe that a race war needs to be triggered and some of them are ready and willing to be that match, as expressed in The Turner Diaries and evangelical proselytizing, as well as white supremacy organizations like The Order. POOTWH and the repub party are all in.
Not in MAGA’s wildest dreams and yours did believe Americans born soldiers would be carrying out these heinous atrocities, I bet your 1st thought was he must be an illegal immigrant from Central America!
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Read more
The active-duty Green Beret who was driving a Tesla Cybertruck that blew up outside the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on New Year’s Day “was a 100 percent patriot,” his bewildered uncle said Thursday.
Matthew Livelsberger, 37, was “like a Rambo-type, for lack of a better word,” Dean Livelsberger told The Independent.
Dean, whose older brother is Livelsberger’s father, Roger, himself an Air Force veteran who served in Vietnam, said his nephew “loved the Army.”
10.5K
Keir Starmer says things are 'worse than we ever imagined' in first keynote address as PM
“He used to have all patriotic stuff on Facebook, he was 100 percent loving the country,” he continued. “He loved Trump, and he was always a very, very patriotic soldier, a patriotic American. It’s one of the reasons he was in Special Forces for so many years. It wasn’t just one tour of duty.”
open image in gallery
Matthew Livelsberger, the man believed to have detonated a Tesla outside Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel, was a Green Beret (LinkedIn)
Dean Livelsberger said he was aware of the explosion in Vegas, but had not yet been made aware that Matt, as he called him, had been named as the culprit until The Independent contacted him for comment. At first, Dean assumed the explosion had been caused by “one of those big lithium batteries that short-circuited or something,” he said. He was relieved that the blast only caused seven minor injuries and didn’t kill anyone else. But, he added, the amateurish construction of the explosive device, an array of propane tanks, fireworks and camping fuel, left him with a slew of additional questions.
“Matt was a very skilled warrior, and he would be able to make — if it was him, and if he did this — he would’ve been able to make a more sophisticated explosive than using propane tanks and camping fuel. He was what you might call a ‘supersoldier.’ If you ever read about the things he was awarded, and the experience he had, some of it doesn’t make sense, when he had the skills and ability to make something more, let’s say, ‘efficient.’ His skills were enormous from what he had been taught in the military.”
With Livelsberger’s skills, his uncle suggested, his nephew “could have fashioned a bomb that would have obliterated half of that hotel if he seriously wanted to hurt others.”
“Think of Oklahoma City,” he said. “McVeigh was just a normal soldier. Not a Tier 1 operator like Matt.”
Livelsberger was in the U.S. Army for 19 years, 18 of which were in the elite Special Forces. He was currently stationed in Germany, and was on leave in Colorado Springs when he rented the Cybertruck and drove to Nevada, law enforcement sources said.
open image in gallery
Livelsberger’s Tesla Cybertruck seen driving through Las Vegas before exploding at a Trump hotel (Las Vegas Metro police)
The truck blew up just a few hours after Shamsud-Din Jabbar rammed a truck into New Year’s Day revelers in New Orleans killing at least 15 people. Jabbar, 42, was also an Army veteran who was posted to the same base as Livelsberger, and also served in Afghanistan around the same time that Livelsberger did. Investigators were looking into a possible link between the two men, who both rented their vehicles through the same carshare service, Turo, but so far they have found no “direct” connection between the two.
At a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said the coroner’s office found that Livelsberger “had sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to the detonation of the vehicle.” And while the investigation is still ongoing, he believed Livelsberger’s actions indicated “a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately thereafter,” rather than a “suicide mission.”
Livelsberger’s military ID and passport were found inside the Cybertruck, as well as a Desert Eagle .50 caliber semi-automatic pistol and an SLR Rifleworks B30. Both weapons, and Livelsberger himself, were burnt “almost beyond recognition,” according to McMahill. He said investigators also recovered a cache of fireworks, along with an iPhone, a smartwatch, and several credit cards in Livelsberger’s name.
open image in gallery
Burned fireworks found inside Livelsberger’s Tesla (Las Vegas Metro police)
Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans of the FBI’s Las Vegas Division said agents had tracked the vehicle from Denver, through Tesla charging stations in Arizona and New Mexico, before it arrived in Vegas at 7:29 a.m. on Wednesday.
Kenny Cooper, assistant special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms’ San Francisco Division, said it remains unclear how the explosives were detonated. He noted that everything used was consumer-grade, such as the camping fuel and propane tanks, in addition to “some explosive targets that can be purchased at any sporting goods store.” Both of the firearms in the Cybertruck had been legally purchased two days earlier, on December 30. Cooper also noted, echoing Dean Livelsberger, that “the level of sophistication is not what we would expect from an individual with this type of military experience.”
Livelsberger divorced his first wife, who now lives in South Florida with her new husband, several years ago. Livelsberger shares a newborn with his new partner, and in September posted a picture on Facebook of himself cradling the infant in his arms, according to Dean. Over the past few months, an array of photos Livelsberger posted from Germany, including pictures of himself proposing to his partner, and the ring he gave her, have “disappeared,” his uncle said.
Livelsberger’s father, who was unreachable on Thursday, was married “several times,” and had children with “a couple of different women,” according to Dean Livelsberger, who has been semi-estranged from his brother for years.
At the same time, Dean said, “Matt wasn’t estranged from the family at all. Everyone thought the world of Matt.”
Glad he’s gone from this earth alone and didn’t take anyone with him!
Comments
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
curious now, how they shift barrier replacement operations and if that wasnt going on, does the perp simply jump out and run through as many mags as possible?
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
Anyone think POOTWH’s threats to make Canada the 51st state, take Greenland and the Panama Canal back are extreme? You know, it emboldens and legitimizes other authoritarians. How about Putin on the ritz taking Alaska back? How would you like them apples? Maybe Finland? All of Ukraine?
Nice to see the gulag lovers cheering on POOTWH. You’ll rue the day.
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana; 2025: Pitt1, Pitt2
Pearl Jam. Bringing lovers together for 34 years.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Gern, I'm pretty sure Linda already has a man in her life, but I appreciate the notion.
And Mickey, I think you've got a great bumper sticker or t-shirt concept there!
Imagine a t-shirt with "Pearl Jam" on the front right pocket and "Bringing Lovers Together For 34 Years" across the back!
Brilliant. I think you should submit the idea to Santos when he returns to the shop next week. Good luck with it!
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Cybertruck driver had likely self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, sheriff says
By
NPR Washington Desk
Fire vehicles surround the valet area where a Tesla Cybertruck caught fire at the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas on Jan. 1.
Authorities have identified the driver of the Cybertruck that exploded in front of the Trump hotel in Las Vegas as 37-year-old Master Sgt. Matthew Alan Livelsberger. In a news briefing Thursday afternoon, police say they still don't have 100 percent confirmation because he was "burned beyond recognition" in the Jan. 1 blast. They're awaiting DNA tests to confirm his identity.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sheriff Kevin McMahill says Livelsberger sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to the Cybertuck detonating; investigators believe it was self inflicted.
Officials found several items in the vehicle including multiple firearms, fireworks, a military ID, an iPhone and several credit cards. The FBI and local law enforcement officials are still looking for a motive.
Livelsberger was an active-duty Special Operations soldier with the U.S. Army. Officials noted similarities with 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, the man who drove a pickup truck onto the sidewalk in New Orleans, killing at least 14 and injuring dozens more on New Year's Day. McMahill said both men served at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, though there's no indication they served in the same unit. They also both served in Afghanistan in 2009, and they both used the rental car app Turo to rent the vehicles used in these attacks. McMahill said details on additional parallels are unknown. Law enforcement and intelligence officials are investigating any potential connection between the two incidents.
Livelsberger served in the active-duty Army from January 2006 to March 2011. He then joined the National Guard from March 2011 to July 2012, followed by the Army Reserve from July 2012 to December 2012.
National Security
What we know about the Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion
U.S. Army Special Operations Command confirmed that Livelsberger was on approved leave at the time of his death.
On Wednesday, Las Vegas police said that crews pulled gasoline canisters, camp fuel canisters and large firework mortars from the back of the Cybertruck. The explosion, which was caught on video, also injured seven people.
Police said the Cybertruck was rented in Colorado. Authorities were able to trace the vehicle through Tesla charging stations to see that it arrived in Las Vegas about an hour before the explosion. Authorities called the incident "isolated."
National
Firework mortars, gas canisters inside Tesla that exploded by Trump's Las Vegas hotel
Jeremy Schwartz, acting special agent in charge of the FBI in Las Vegas, said the agency was working closely with area law enforcement to learn more about the explosion. The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force was working to determine whether the explosion was an act of terrorism.
A source familiar with Livelsberger's background who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter tells NPR's Tom Bowman that Livelsberger was deployed five times to Afghanistan on combat missions. He had not been deployed for the past 12 months.
Livelsberger was awarded a Bronze Star for valor, an Army commendation for valor, as well as a combat infantry badge, the source said.
Correction Jan. 2, 2025
The Jan. 1 truck attack in New Orleans killed at least 14 people, not 15 as a previous version of this story said.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
What a story.
https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/cybertruck-explosion-suspect-matthew-livelsberger-vegas-b2672940.html
Cybertruck blast suspect was a ‘Rambo type’ who loved Trump, family says
Exclusive: Matthew Livelsberger’s shocked uncle told The Independent that the Green Beret was a ‘supersoldier’
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Your support makes all the difference.The active-duty Green Beret who was driving a Tesla Cybertruck that blew up outside the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas on New Year’s Day “was a 100 percent patriot,” his bewildered uncle said Thursday.
Matthew Livelsberger, 37, was “like a Rambo-type, for lack of a better word,” Dean Livelsberger told The Independent.
Dean, whose older brother is Livelsberger’s father, Roger, himself an Air Force veteran who served in Vietnam, said his nephew “loved the Army.”
“He used to have all patriotic stuff on Facebook, he was 100 percent loving the country,” he continued. “He loved Trump, and he was always a very, very patriotic soldier, a patriotic American. It’s one of the reasons he was in Special Forces for so many years. It wasn’t just one tour of duty.”
Dean Livelsberger said he was aware of the explosion in Vegas, but had not yet been made aware that Matt, as he called him, had been named as the culprit until The Independent contacted him for comment. At first, Dean assumed the explosion had been caused by “one of those big lithium batteries that short-circuited or something,” he said. He was relieved that the blast only caused seven minor injuries and didn’t kill anyone else. But, he added, the amateurish construction of the explosive device, an array of propane tanks, fireworks and camping fuel, left him with a slew of additional questions.
“Matt was a very skilled warrior, and he would be able to make — if it was him, and if he did this — he would’ve been able to make a more sophisticated explosive than using propane tanks and camping fuel. He was what you might call a ‘supersoldier.’ If you ever read about the things he was awarded, and the experience he had, some of it doesn’t make sense, when he had the skills and ability to make something more, let’s say, ‘efficient.’ His skills were enormous from what he had been taught in the military.”
With Livelsberger’s skills, his uncle suggested, his nephew “could have fashioned a bomb that would have obliterated half of that hotel if he seriously wanted to hurt others.”
“Think of Oklahoma City,” he said. “McVeigh was just a normal soldier. Not a Tier 1 operator like Matt.”
Livelsberger was in the U.S. Army for 19 years, 18 of which were in the elite Special Forces. He was currently stationed in Germany, and was on leave in Colorado Springs when he rented the Cybertruck and drove to Nevada, law enforcement sources said.
The truck blew up just a few hours after Shamsud-Din Jabbar rammed a truck into New Year’s Day revelers in New Orleans killing at least 15 people. Jabbar, 42, was also an Army veteran who was posted to the same base as Livelsberger, and also served in Afghanistan around the same time that Livelsberger did. Investigators were looking into a possible link between the two men, who both rented their vehicles through the same carshare service, Turo, but so far they have found no “direct” connection between the two.
At a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said the coroner’s office found that Livelsberger “had sustained a gunshot wound to the head prior to the detonation of the vehicle.” And while the investigation is still ongoing, he believed Livelsberger’s actions indicated “a suicide with a bombing that occurred immediately thereafter,” rather than a “suicide mission.”
Livelsberger’s military ID and passport were found inside the Cybertruck, as well as a Desert Eagle .50 caliber semi-automatic pistol and an SLR Rifleworks B30. Both weapons, and Livelsberger himself, were burnt “almost beyond recognition,” according to McMahill. He said investigators also recovered a cache of fireworks, along with an iPhone, a smartwatch, and several credit cards in Livelsberger’s name.
Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans of the FBI’s Las Vegas Division said agents had tracked the vehicle from Denver, through Tesla charging stations in Arizona and New Mexico, before it arrived in Vegas at 7:29 a.m. on Wednesday.
Kenny Cooper, assistant special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms’ San Francisco Division, said it remains unclear how the explosives were detonated. He noted that everything used was consumer-grade, such as the camping fuel and propane tanks, in addition to “some explosive targets that can be purchased at any sporting goods store.” Both of the firearms in the Cybertruck had been legally purchased two days earlier, on December 30. Cooper also noted, echoing Dean Livelsberger, that “the level of sophistication is not what we would expect from an individual with this type of military experience.”
Livelsberger divorced his first wife, who now lives in South Florida with her new husband, several years ago. Livelsberger shares a newborn with his new partner, and in September posted a picture on Facebook of himself cradling the infant in his arms, according to Dean. Over the past few months, an array of photos Livelsberger posted from Germany, including pictures of himself proposing to his partner, and the ring he gave her, have “disappeared,” his uncle said.
Livelsberger’s father, who was unreachable on Thursday, was married “several times,” and had children with “a couple of different women,” according to Dean Livelsberger, who has been semi-estranged from his brother for years.
At the same time, Dean said, “Matt wasn’t estranged from the family at all. Everyone thought the world of Matt.”
huh