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 "I'm anticipating we'll be doing a victory dance," said Cox, 47, a
chainsaw artist and founder of Bikers for Trump, thousands of whom
he estimates will hit the Ohio city for the July 18-21 Republican
National Convention.
"But if the Republican Party tries to pull off any backroom deals
and ignores the will of the people, our role will change."
Bikers For Trump is part of a diverse array of groups coordinating
to hold thousands-strong protests and marches if the real-estate
mogul is denied outright victory at the Republican Party’s
nominating convention in Cleveland.
The risks of confrontation and violence surrounding Trump events
were highlighted again on Thursday, when around 20 people were
arrested following clashes between anti-Trump protesters and police
outside a rally for the candidate in California. It was the worst
outbreak of violence since Trump was forced to cancel a rally in
Chicago in mid-March.
Anti-Trump protests are expected in Cleveland. In late March, the
left-leaning National Lawyers Guild held a conference in the city to
coordinate legal support to protesters in the event of mass arrests
during demonstrations.
 Leaders and members of the pro-Trump groups told Reuters their main
goal is to mount a show of support for their candidate, who after a
series of primary victories this week looks increasingly likely to
clinch the nomination outright ahead of Texas Senator Ted Cruz and
Ohio Governor John Kasich.
But if he falls short of the required 1,237 delegates, raising the
risk he could lose out in a contested convention, they said they
plan to do all they can to exert pressure on party leaders to
prevent someone else getting the nomination.
Several Trump supporters suggested that tensions could escalate if
the party was seen as trying to deny Trump the nomination despite
his commanding lead in delegates won in primary contests.
"The plan either way is send a message to the Republican
establishment to respect our votes," said Ralph King, a member of
the Cleveland Tea Party. "If the party tries to parachute in a white
knight to steal the nomination, it's not going to end well."
Trump has said that if he fails to get the nomination there will be
"riots." Though there have been violent incidents at some Trump
rallies, organizers insist they work closely with the authorities to
avoid violence.
The U.S. Secret Service is the lead agency for the convention. Its
spokeswoman Nicole Mainor said protests or violence for such an
event are "factored into all of our contingency plans that have been
built up over many, many months."
The Cleveland Division of Police also has a security plan in place
as it does for all major events of this kind, a spokeswoman said in
an email, without providing further details.
 Bikers for Trump, which Cox founded in August and which he claims
has 30,000 members and rising, is just one of a mixed bag of
pro-Trump groups that aim to be in Cleveland. Reuters could not
independently verify Cox's membership claims for the group, which
has provided unofficial security at Trump rallies around the
country.
Pro-Trump groups planning a presence in Cleveland include some Tea
Party-affiliated organizations, a new group called Stop The Steal
led by Trump ally Roger Stone, Citizens for Trump, and the Truckers
for Trump group.
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King, a veteran of Tea Party rallies, is coordinating with other
groups and local police to obtain permits for marches and protests
during the convention, and to hold a major rally in downtown
Cleveland that will then march on the convention site.
"STOP THE STEAL"
Stone plans to raise $262,000 through online donations to hire buses
and is negotiations with colleges in the Cleveland area on sleeping
space for activists. He says he wants Republican delegates Trump has
won in primaries to sign a "voluntary pledge" to back him beyond the
first ballot should there be a contested convention. He did not
disclose how much money the group has raised.
Citizens for Trump co-founder Tim Selaty says he will have activists
filming events inside the convention center and broadcasting them
live on social media "to document every move."
"If Mr. Trump walks into the convention center a couple of hundred
votes ahead of Cruz and loses the nomination, it will not be a
pretty scene," Selaty said.
Truckers for Trump says it has 4,000 members and that more than
1,000 are committed to driving their big rigs to Cleveland.
The pro-Trump groups say they are not seeking confrontation but fear
that opponents of their candidate might start trouble.
"Our members will instructed that if there's trouble to stand back
and let law enforcement do its job," said Matthew Heimbach, founder
of the Traditionalist Workers Party, a "pro-white nationalist,
pro-working class" party, which plans to have a few dozen members in
Cleveland.
It is unclear is how many nationalists or white supremacists might
attend. Trump has adherents on the far right, including former Klu
Klux Klan grand wizard David Duke, who told his radio show listeners
in February that voting for anyone other than Trump was "treason to
your heritage."
The National Socialist Movement, a prominent white nationalist
group, told Reuters it did not plan any events.
Brian Culpepper, a spokesman for the Detroit-based group and a Trump
supporter, said many members support the mogul. But it does not
officially back Republican or Democratic office seekers as it wishes
to replace the current system with a white nationalist power
structure.
"Our members are free to attend events in Cleveland as individuals,"
Culpepper said. "But we do not plan anything as a group."
(Reporting By Nick Carey; editing by Stuart Grudgings)
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