Postal Letter - Are the people making these threats "patriots"?

Are the people making these threats "patriots"?

The backlash: Reform turns personal By: Jake Sherman and Marin Cogan http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=8DB34C71-18FE-70B2-A820DB90C45EC159 March 24, 2010 04:51 AM EDT Reps. Louise Slaughter and Bart Stupak have received death threats. A tea party participant published what he thought was Rep. Thomas Perriello’s home address and urged disgruntled voters to “drop by” for a “good face-to-face chat.” Vandals broke windows at Slaughter’s office in New York and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’s office in Arizona. And angry voters are planning to protest this weekend at the home of Steve Driehaus — who’s already seen a photograph of his children used in a newspaper ad published by reform opponents. The vitriolic health care debate has become personal — too personal, say House Democrats who voted for the bill and now find not just themselves but their families in the cross hairs of opponents. Slaughter, a Democrat who chairs the House Rules Committee, said a caller to her office last week vowed to send snipers to “kill the children of the members who voted yes.” Her office reported the call to police, who were dispatched to provide protection for Slaughter’s grandchildren. She has also been in touch with the FBI and U.S. Postal Service inspectors, who intercepted a letter en route to her home in upstate New York. Stupak, the Michigan Democrat whose last-minute compromise on abortion guaranteed passage of the bill Sunday, said callers have left messages for him saying, “You’re dead; we know where you live; we’ll get you.” “My wife still can’t answer the phone,” Stupak told POLITICO on Tuesday. The messages are “full of obscenities if she leaves it plugged in. In my office, we can’t get a phone out. It’s just bombarded.” Stupak, a former police officer, said he’s not fazed by the threats or by the prospect of protests at his district office this weekend. “I’ve looked down barrels of guns,” he said. “I’ve talked my way out of it.” But Democrats said their political opponents go too far when they bring members’ families into the fray. Driehaus, a Democrat from Ohio, was outraged last week when a group called the Committee to Rethink Reform used a photo of him and his two young daughters in a newspaper ad urging him to vote against any health care reform bill that included federal funding for abortion. Both the group and the newspaper — the Cincinnati Enquirer — apologized for including Driehaus’s daughters in the ad. “I’m very protective of my family, like most of us,” Driehaus said Tuesday. “There is no reason for my wife and kids to be brought into any of this. If people want to talk to me, if people want to approach me about an issue, I’m more than happy to talk about the issue, regardless of what side they’re on. But I do believe when you bring in a member’s family, that you’ve gone way too far.” Driehaus faults Republicans for providing encouragement to the most extreme opponents of reform. Last week, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) warned that anti-abortion Democrats would suffer politically if they voted for the health care bill; he singled out Driehaus, saying he “may be a dead man” and “can’t go home to the west side of Cincinnati” because “the Catholics will run him out of town.” “Mr. Boehner made comments about me and my predicament when I go home which I felt were wildly out of bounds for his position and very irresponsible, quite frankly. He’s from next door. That’s not helpful. That’s irresponsible,” Driehaus said. Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said, “The leader does not condone violence, and his remark was obviously not meant to be taken literally. He is urging Americans to take the anger they’re feeling and focus it on building a new majority that will listen to the people.” No one condones death threats against members or their families, but not everyone is apologetic about taking complaints about health care reform straight to the homes of members. Mike Troxel, an organizer for the Lynchburg Tea Party, posted what he believed to be Perriello’s home address on his blog this week, sarcastically urging other tea partiers to stop by and “say hi and express their thanks regarding his vote for health care.” The address turned out to be the home of Perriello’s brother — who has four children — but Troxel told POLITICO he didn’t intend to remove it from his blog. “If they would like to provide me with the address of Tom, then I’d be more than happy to take it down,” he said. “I have no reason to believe it’s not his house.” A fellow tea party blogger said he thought it was fine for Troxel to post Perriello’s home address. “They have our home addresses,” said Kurt Feigel, who complained that protesters had little choice but to go to Perriello’s home because Perriello’s office doesn’t “respond to e-mail; they don’t respond to letters; they don’t respond to us showing up at his office. So what am I going to do?” Per

Public Comments

You bet
Of course not. They are miserable Republican assholes which must rotten in hell. Republicans, stick your thumbs down directly into your anuses.
No, they are crazyyy ppl.
No they are terrorist.
Were the ones that fought a war in the late 1700s patriots? just asking. lp Having now scanned that drivel, the comments have been taken out of context.
Joe McCarthy would be proud of you.... ....then again, so would Joe Stalin..... .
Yes
Yes. They're only making "threats," as you call them, because the government has already threatened them. Don't punch me in the gut if you can't handle me kicking you in the a$$.
You should write a book. I don't know what they are other than pissed off.
Bulloney!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! this is apparently the new Radical Extreme Leftist tactic, make a bunch of false and defamatory accusations against people who disagree with you. The accusations upon investigation have turned out to be false!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Al Sharpton pulled one over on us with the Tawana Brawley case. Now the Radical Extreme Leftists are coming up with a bunch of accusations that have about as much substance as the accusations by Tawana Brawley.
I don't equate cowards to patriots... call me old-fashioned. These anonymous threats are coming from cowards pure, and simple. If you really believe in sacraficing for your cause then stand up, identify yourself and take to the streets if you have to... but making anonymous phone calls to a senator's wife and kids or vandalizing offices at 2 AM. That's a coward's way.
If you don't like what the government is doing, you start blowing things up. This is a tradition in the US, from George Washington to Timothy McVeigh.
We should all be as mellow as Liberals Liberals never drew Hitler Mustaches on Bush Liberals would NEVER burn Bush in effigy oh wait - never mind
People like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Mark Levin get death threats all time time. Does that mean the views of the threater should be cast upon everyone on the left? No. Each side has its nut jobs. No threats should be made, but its not isolated to one side.
How is this any different that prominent right-wing folks receiving death threats? You think Ann Coulter and Michelle Malkin hasven't had a few in their time? Seems like whenever there is an economic summit somewhere, anti-capitalist protestors love nothing more than smashing the windows of a local Starbucks (one of the best corporate citizens by the way) and burning up a few cars. There are thugs and extremists on the fringes of both sides.
You say this like TEA Partiers are the only ones who send death threats to public figures. let me guess, you thing they are all terrorists as well and should be thrown into Guantanamo bay along with Rush, Glann, and O'Reilly, who cares that you are against detainees being held there. Liberals have extremely thin skin.
Will Politico stop masturbating? Your Saul Alinsky question is the same, or rather asking if someone would stop beating their wife? NOT A QUESTION
You know, the whining from our government is just ridiculous. They have all the means of government protection of their person at their disposal that money can buy. If you do not see this as an attempt to censure free speech, you are brainwashed. Individuals who commit crimes can be punished under existing laws, and no doubt will be. But for liberals to use these isolated incidents to brand half the country is unacceptable. It is the job of the elected representatives to not infringe on our rights or freedoms. Government is stomping all over our rights and freedoms, currently, and if you try to oppress free speech, that is what causes violence. While I do not condone violence, I do despise the libs in government, currently. I plan to keep the right to say so.
Yes, and Real Americans. Bush and Republican Politicians got death threats all the time. But they didn't whine about it like the sissy little commie Liberals.
The people making these threats are crazy cowards. These are same people who scream about the constitution and yet they can't accept losing to the left. It's time they grew up.
You see, they're just so pro-life they had to threaten to kill Congressmen's children for freedom! Wait, what?
I don't condone this behavior, but it is the same thing Liberals have done and there was no outcry then. Very hypocritical
The conservatives that answered to distance themselves from the violent nutjobs are a big relief to me. I don't know how many of the right wing extremists are harboring violent revenge fantasies against everyone with opposing political viewpoints. I am alarmed, though, to see some people standing up for the "patriots". Making death threats on a person is a criminal activity and has nothing to do with patriotism.
I love the people who equate this to the war in the 1700s. England taxing the colonists to death for...Profits. Liberals impose ONE major tax that will SAVE AMERICAN LIVES, and suddenly they are equated to the English empire of the 1700s? You must be joking. These threats are not justifiable. Sorry. Who the heck brought up Ann Coulter? The woman who said Jews need to be perfected? Again, why is she being compared to people who passed legislation that will SAVE AMERICAN LIVES? You know you have horrible morals the second you stoop to this level. Your cause is not pure if you start to threaten the lives of children/grandchildren/families. Sorry, that's as immoral as it gets. Horrible actions. A disgrace to America.
I think it probably depends on what side of the aisle you fall on. However, threats and intimidation are not supposed to be the American way. imo, the people making these threats are fringe element people who don't have the cognitive ability to do things in the proper manner.
Not at all they are bullies and thugs, the same people who made threats at Town Halls and wouldn't let citizens talk. There is no excuse and no 'free speech protection' for those that advocate or commit violence. You cannot incite to riot. You cannot threaten the lives of innocents. They are the repulsive underside of America. Can anyone seriously imagine George Washington threatening to kill a citizens grandchildren because he didn't get his way on a vote?
They aren't patriots. And don't confuse them with Libertarians or supporters of the Tea Party movement because they wouldn't be welcome. ...
MY FAVORITE RESPONSE OF ALL: "... those comments are taken out of context..." Out of context? How do you take publishing someone's home address and suggesting an audience go there to 'talk to' the occupant 'face-to-face' "out of context"? How do you take, “You’re dead; we know where you live; we’ll get you.” "out of context"?
As a minister I have been warning people for years that the purpose of a lot of laws passed under (both Democrat and Republican) Presidents was designed to bring our country down to the level of other countries, so kaos breaks out; and the government would declare martial law and then bring in UN troops, to bring our country into the planned end-time government. I accidently went to the Patriots website yesterday and it's my belief from viewing the videos there that we are now about to begin seeing violence in our country, that is aimed at trying to get our leaders to again return the country to what our forefathers had thought was the type of government they wanted to start. Now I'm hearing that we need to go into doctors offices and emergency rooms and insist that they give us tests and treatments we could not afford in the past. I'm also hearing that doctors (new and specialists) will all get paid the same; even though one may be a quack and the other the top in his field. I can see a lot of doctors quitting when that happens. I also can see some quitting when violence breaks out, because they had to tell someone that Obamacare won't cover their health issue.
So I guess what a lot of you are saying is because of the "Obama-Care" that kids deserve to get threatened? OMG you people are insane, really!!!!!!!!! I WANT MY WAY AND I CANT GET IT SO IMMA KILL THE KIDS!!!! SICK!!!!!!!!!!! What do you think you are for agreeing with that people? It doesn't matter whose side you are on. Its just a question of evil or non-evil?