The case of Kyle Rittenhouse, acquitted in the 2020 murders of two men amid chaos on the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, is ominous for the peaceful resolution of political disagreements. The sense of menace arises less from the utterly misguided 17-year-old shooter, or his complete escape from justice, than from the celebration by Republicans and “conservatives” of Rittenhouse and even of the killings he perpetrated.
This telling moment heightens the feeling of apprehension provoked by recurring threats and incidents of actual violence emanating from the far right and then justified, usually with indignant enthusiasm, by Republican elected officials at the highest level. The anger and hatred that have long simmered within that party are rapidly devolving into homicidal rage.
Consider the matter of Rep. Paul Gosar R-AR), who posted a video that depicted him murdering his colleague Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and attempting to kill President Joe Biden with swords. Gosar’s fantasy bloodbath resulted in his censure. (This offensive cartoon wasn’t even original, ripping off an identical 2016 meme that showed “Donald Trump” attacking “Hillary Clinton.”)
While […]
There are some good republicans. One in particular is Ben Sasse of Nebraska. Both parties are afflicted by extremists. The counter part to the Republican extremists are A.O.C. and her so called Progressives. So stop ragging on the Republican Party. Broad negative criticisms are useless.
Michael —
You have posted a complete false equivalency. There are no Democrats making videos of killing other members of Congress and attacking the president. There are no Democrats offering military weapons in fund raisers. There are no Democrats urging people to get their guns ready, and on and on, all with complete silence from the rest of the Party. You claim to be a physician so if that is true you had to be smart enough to get through medical school, yet you seem to be unable to discern a false equivalency. Your comments bespeak willful ignorance and bias.
Michael,
Ben Sasse of Nebraska, supports Brett Kavanaugh, who believes presidents should be protected from lawsuits, and criminal investigations. You know, like the former impeached twice President Trump who incited the Jan. 6th insurrection upon our nations Capitol? After the violent domestic terrorist attack, Trump was stated as saying the terrorists were “peaceful loving patriots”
Michael, why do Republicans either remain weirdly silent on blatant violence and terrorism in their own party -or counter with redirection of something completely unrelated about the Democratic Party?