By Maverick
The early 1990s were a turbulent time in America, a period marked by political distrust, fears of government overreach, and the rise of anti-government militia groups. Out of this unrest came two of the most shocking domestic tragedies in modern U.S. history: the 1993 Waco Siege and the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing. The two events were connected by ideology, emotion, and a chain of cause and effect that revealed deep cracks in America’s relationship with its own government. Let’s begin with the Waco Siege.
In February 1993, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) launched a raid on a secluded religious Mount Carmel compound outside Waco, Texas. The group inside called themselves the Branch Davidians, an offshoot of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, led by a charismatic and self-proclaimed “messiah” named David Koresh, whose birth name was Vernon Howell. The ATF had been investigating allegations that Koresh and his followers were stockpiling illegal weapons and converting semi-automatic rifles into machine guns.
On February 28th, 1993, just two days after the World Trade Center bombing in New York City, ATF agents stormed the compound. When the ATF arrived, they were met with gunfire because the Branch Davidians had been given a heads-up that the raid was going down. A fierce firefight broke out, leading to the deaths of four agents and six Branch Davidians. The failed raid set the stage for one of the longest and most controversial standoffs in U.S. history.
After the initial assault, the FBI took over operations, surrounding the Mount Carmel compound. Negotiations began, broadcasts were exchanged, and the world watched on television as a tense siege dragged on for 51 days. Koresh insisted he was receiving divine messages, claiming to be the Lamb of God with a prophetic mission. Inside were men, women, and children, followers who believed he was preparing them for the end times. The FBI alternated between psychological tactics such as blaring loud music, cutting power, using spotlights, and negotiation efforts to convince Koresh to surrender. Despite moments of progress, talks broke down repeatedly.
Here is where things get interesting. On the morning of April 19th, 1993, (remember the date April 19th for later), the FBI initiated what they called a “final assault,” using armored vehicles to punch holes in the walls of the compound and pump in tear gas, hoping to force the Davidians out peacefully.
Instead, chaos erupted. Fires broke out, whether started intentionally by Davidians or accidentally during the assault remains disputed to this day. Within minutes, flames consumed the compound. Seventy-six Branch Davidians, including Koresh and 25 children, died in the inferno. Television cameras captured the horror live. To millions of Americans, it was a shocking symbol of government force, a reminder of the deadly potential when authority and resistance collide. That event gave the federal government a bad rap.
The Waco Siege became a lightning rod for anti-government sentiment across the country. Many saw the event as proof that federal agencies had overstepped their limits, trampling on civil liberties and religious freedom. Militia movements, already on the rise in the early 1990s, used Waco as a rallying cry by spreading the message that the government cannot be trusted.
Among those deeply affected was a young Gulf War veteran named Timothy McVeigh. McVeigh had reportedly grown increasingly disillusioned with the federal government after his military service. He traveled the country attending gun shows, where he distributed anti-government literature and railed against perceived tyranny. When he watched the fiery end of Waco on television, it supposedly struck him deeply. He was now convinced that the U.S. government was at war with the citizens they swore to protect and serve. McVeigh even traveled to Waco during the siege to observe the standoff firsthand, selling bumper stickers and literature critical of the FBI and ATF. Two years to the day after the Waco inferno, (remember the date April 19th?) McVeigh carried out the deadliest act of domestic terrorism in American history in a pre-9/11 world.
On the morning of April 19th, 1995, McVeigh presumably parked a Ryder truck loaded with explosives outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. This was similar to how the 1993 World Trade Center bombing went down. Inside were employees of federal agencies, including the ATF, and a daycare center. At 9:02 a.m., the truck exploded. The blast tore through the building, blasting the facade off, killing 168 people, including 19 children in that daycare center. More than 680 others were injured.
McVeigh later said the date was chosen deliberately to coincide with the anniversary of Waco’s end. The Oklahoma City bombing was McVeigh’s twisted response to what he saw as tyranny and government murder. He considered it a military strike in defense of liberty, though his actions claimed the lives of innocent civilians and children. Investigators later found that McVeigh’s motivation was fueled by Waco and another event, the 1992 Ruby Ridge standoff in Idaho, where federal agents killed a woman and child during a confrontation with a survivalist family.
I’ll briefly explain the details behind Ruby Ridge so you can grasp the fundamentals behind these anti-government movements. The Ruby Ridge incident was an 11-day armed standoff between a rural Idaho family and federal law enforcement in 1992 that became one of the most controversial domestic confrontations in U.S. history. It began with Randy Weaver, a former Green Beret and self-described survivalist who moved with his wife Vicki and their children to a remote cabin on Ruby Ridge, near Naples, Idaho, to live in isolation from what they viewed as a corrupt government.
In 1989, Weaver was approached by a federal informant who persuaded him to sell two sawed-off shotguns, an act that violated federal firearms law. When Weaver refused to become an informant against white supremacist groups in exchange for leniency, federal prosecutors charged him with the weapons offense. Due to a clerical error and miscommunication about his court date, Weaver failed to appear in court, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Believing it was a government trap, he chose not to surrender, retreating to his cabin with his family and family friend Kevin Harris.
In August 1992, after months of surveillance, six U.S. Marshals conducted reconnaissance near the Weaver property to plan an arrest. On August 21st, a violent confrontation broke out when the family’s dog discovered the marshals. In the ensuing chaos, 14-year-old Sammy Weaver and Deputy U.S. Marshal William Degan were both killed, and Kevin Harris was wounded. The next day, the FBI Hostage Rescue Team (HRT) took over the operation and adopted controversial “shoot-on-sight” rules of engagement. That afternoon, sniper Lon Horiuchi shot and wounded Randy Weaver and killed Vicki Weaver, who was holding her infant daughter in her arms inside the cabin. The killing of Vicki Weaver shocked the nation and sparked widespread outrage over the government’s excessive use of force.
The standoff continued for 10 tense days, with federal agents surrounding the cabin and negotiators attempting to convince the family to surrender. The siege finally ended on August 31, 1992, when Weaver and Harris gave themselves up following negotiations led by Bo Gritz, a former Green Beret and associate of Weaver. In the aftermath, Kevin Harris was acquitted of all charges, and Randy Weaver was acquitted of all major counts except for failing to appear in court and violating bail conditions, serving 18 months in prison. The federal government later paid the Weaver family $3.1 million to settle their wrongful death claims.
Ruby Ridge became a defining moment in the 1990s, fueling the anti-government and militia movements and eroding public trust in federal law enforcement. It was later cited as an example of federal overreach and a catalyst for subsequent events such as the 1993 Waco siege and the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, whose perpetrators referenced Ruby Ridge as part of their motivation. To Timothy McVeigh, Waco and Ruby Ridge were symbols of a government gone rogue. His bombing was meant to ignite a revolution. Instead, it united the nation in horror and reaffirmed that terrorism, whether foreign or domestic, has no moral justification, no matter how angry one is with the federal government. To McVeigh, Waco, and Ruby Ridge were symbols of a government gone rogue. His bombing was meant to ignite a revolution. Instead, it united the nation in horror and reaffirmed that terrorism, whether foreign or domestic, has no moral justification, no matter how angry one is with the federal government.
The Oklahoma City bombing shocked the United States to its core. It led to tighter anti-terrorism laws, expanded FBI authority, and the eventual execution of McVeigh in June 2001. But the shadow of Waco never truly disappeared. It became a symbol for both sides of the debate, a lesson in the dangers of government excess, and a tragic warning about the deadly consequences of extremism and conspiracy.
In the years following the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, several conspiracy theories emerged, challenging the official account that Timothy McVeigh and his co-conspirator Terry Nichols acted alone. Some theorists claimed McVeigh was part of a broader network involving right-wing militias or foreign operatives, while others alleged government complicity, suggesting that federal agents had prior knowledge of the attack, allowed it to happen, or even made it happen as a pretext for expanding anti-terrorism powers, ergo collapsing additional civil liberties under the guise of combating terrorism. Rumors of a “second bomber,” aka John Doe #2, involved, missing surveillance tapes, and evidence fueled speculation, though exhaustive investigations and the FBI’s final reports found no credible proof of additional conspirators despite others seeing another middle Eastern-looking man with McVeigh. Please check out my Oklahoma City Bombing film for additional information on that event. Please share your thoughts in the comment section. Be well.
