After Giffords shooting, Palin aide says ‘crosshairs’ really surveyor marks
Monday, January 10, 2011 at 11:21 am
- 18 Comments
An aide to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said on a conservative radio program Sunday that last year’s much-maligned ads by Palin’s PAC showing rifle crosshairs over 20 Democratic congressional districts – including Gabrielle Giffords’s CD8 in Arizona – were actually meant to represent surveyor’s symbols on a map.
But shortly after last November’s midterm election, in which Giffords was one of only two of the targeted Dems reelected, Palin called last year’s campaign a “bullseye” and crowed about taking down 18 of 20.
After Palin’s PAC posted the campaign last March, Giffords, now in critical condition after an assassination attempt Saturday, was critical of Palin’s violent imagery: “We’re on Sarah Palin’s targeted list. Crosshairs of a gunsight over our district. When people do that, they’ve got to realize there’s consequences.”
Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnick, a Democrat, pointedly decried the heated political rhetoric in Arizona and the effect it may have on mentally ill people like Giffords’s alleged attacker, 22-year-ol Jared Lee Loughner of Tucson, now in police custody after bystanders captured him after he killed six and wounded 14 outside a Safeway grocery store.
“When you look at unbalanced people, how they respond to the vitriol that comes out of certain mouths about tearing down the government. The anger, the hatred, the bigotry that goes on in this country is getting to be outrageous,” Dupnick said at press conference Saturday. “And unfortunately, Arizona I think has become sort of the capital. We have become the mecca for prejudice and bigotry.”
Tea party favorites and conservative Republicans ratcheted up the warlike and violent imagery during last year’s campaign, aiming most of their vitriol at President Barack Obama for passing “Obama-care” in an effort to get more Americans covered by adequate health insurance.
Giffords voted for health-care reform and saw one of her Tucson offices vandalized with what police believe may have been a bullet through one of the windows.
Rising Republican star Congresswoman Michele Bachmann was particularly noteworthy in her borderline militant stance against health-care reform, saying on Sean Hannity’s radio show, “We can never forget that the Founders were rebelling against a governmental authority that abused their taxation power. And that was the tyranny. That’s exactly what’s happening right now. And we have to — we have to rise up and say, ‘No more. Not on my watch. No more.’”
In early spring 2009, she told listeners on WTTC-AM:
I want people in Minnesota armed and dangerous on this issue of the energy tax because we need to fight back. Thomas Jefferson told us, having a revolution every now and then is a good thing, and the people — we the people — are going to have to fight back hard if we’re not going to lose our country. And I think this has the potential of changing the dynamic of freedom forever in the United States.
At a Republican event in Denver in 2009, Bachmann was much more graphic:
“This cannot pass,” she told a crowd at a gathering sponsored by the conservative think tank Independence Institute. “What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn’t pass.”
(A year ago, Bachmann told Mpls.St.Paul’s Steve Marsh that such violent imagery is “not me!”)
Police have yet to ascribe a motive to Loughner’s alleged rampage, but Internet postings and interviews with acquaintances and classmates paint a picture of a deeply disturbed young man with a strong objection to government policies. He had been rejected for military service and thrown out of his community college for erratic behavior.
18 Comments
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 11:53 am
Yeah. Pretty interesting considering this tweet from Palin herself:
“Remember months ago “bullseye” icon used 2 target the 20 Obamacare-lovin’ incumbent seats? We won 18 out of 20 (90% success rate;T’aint bad)”
http://twitter.com/#!/SarahPalinUSA/status/29677744457
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 11:57 am
This tragedy is being used by those on the Left and by their lapdog media to try to shut people up. That’s how they operate. They can’t win the debate intellectually so they resort to shutting people up. Getting sponsors to withdraw their ads. Trying to get the “fairness doctrine” passed. Trying to control the language via “political correctness.”
Well guess what? It’s not going to shut us up.
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:03 pm
Those who urge violence against politicians should shut up.
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:09 pm
Baloney on the “suveryor marks” angle.
Again, words DO have consequences.
From http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/palin_violence/?r=6816&id=14885-2743329-4a8T7Nx which includes links to sources:
And on March 22, 2010, just hours after Rep. Giffords cast her vote in favor of health care reform, a vandal jumped a gate and smashed the glass front door of her Arizona office.
It was just days later that the now infamous map featuring Rep. Giffords’ district in the crosshairs was posted by Sarah Palin’s PAC. In announcing the map, Palin issued a chilling tweet urging her supporters “Don’t retreat. Instead — reload!” Incredulously, through a spokesperson, Sarah Palin is denying that the crosshairs on her map targeting 20 Democrats who voted against health care reform represents gun sights.
As if the crosshairs weren’t clear enough, Jesse Kelley, Rep. Giffords’ Republican opponent in a hard fought race for reelection held an event two months later that makes the stakes all too clear. He asked supporters to donate $50 in order to “shoot a fully automatic M16″ to “get on target” and help “remove Gabrielle Giffords.” Sarah Palin subsequently praised Jesse Kelly on Fox Business News saying: “I don’t feel worthy to lace his combat boots.”
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:11 pm
Shut up or shot down? I’ll take shut up every time.
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:22 pm
Isn’t it amazing how quickly Palin transforms from ‘Momma Bear’ to ‘Wounded Doe’? Who would have thought it possible?
More interesting stuff from the Tea Party: (from Rick Ungar in Forbes)
Then came the deeply disturbing memo published by Judson Phillips, founder of the Tea Party Nation.
It was immediately clear that Mr. Phillips is far more concerned about his own political interests and power than he is with the health of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords or in experiencing even the tiniest measure of compassion for the families who lost loved ones in this awful attack.
In his memo, Phillips urged his Tea Party supporters to blame liberals for the attack.
“The hard left is going to try and silence the Tea Party movement by blaming us for this. Clinton used the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing to “blame conservative talk radio, especially Rush Limbaugh” and “The tactic worked then, backing conservatives off and possibly helping to ensure a second Clinton term.” Phillips continued, “The left is coming and will hit us hard on this. We need to push back harder with the simple truth. The shooter was a liberal lunatic. Emphasis on both words.”
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:27 pm
Keep drinkin that “fair and balanced” fools juice there Dennis. Even Palins Calvinist religio New Apostolic Reformation uses verbal weaponry and battle lingo. Try and refute that.
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:33 pm
The New Apostolic Reformation/Third Wave~ Spiritual Warefare
The New Apostolic Reformation is a rapidly growing relational network of charismatic ministries that emerged from the independent charismatic movement, sometimes referred to collectively as the Third Wave. The New Apostolic Reformation can now be defined as a distinct movement with a unique theology and is similar to the ideology of a movement called Latter Rain which was determined to be a heresy by the Assemblies of God in the late 1940s. The central figure in the movement, C. Peter Wagner (think Rick Warren and Lou Engle) has organized the sect structure and defined its primary theology. He declared 2001 as the beginning of the new Apostolic Age. Wagner’s extensive Apostolic network includes 500 Apostles from the U.S. and 42 other countries, each with their own network of churches and ministries, some with hundreds or even thousands. This network is interconnected with other Apostolic networks around the world who share media, conferences, schools, and training, and revivals.
The major tenets of the adherents of this sect include the belief that we are living in the final years before the return of Christ. However, they differ from dispensationalists in their belief that they must defeat evil on the earth and purify the existing churches before Jesus can return. Furthermore, the building of this “Kingdom of God” is not to be delayed until after the Rapture, or to be built in a heavenly sphere. They believe that they have a mandate to build the Kingdom in the present and in the physical realm. In preparation for this task, this final generation is being “imparted” with special supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit that will allow them to wage spiritual warfare and take control of the earth from the devil and an array of demons. The church must be unified under the leadership of their apostles and prophets. The mandate for building the Kingdom includes their current Seven Mountains strategy for the taking control over government, arts and entertainment, media, education, family, religion, and business.
This effort includes extensive mission work around the globe featuring their well developed spiritual warfare strategies which have been published in books and videos. The goal of these spiritual warfare tactics is to take cities and communities from the territorial demons that control theses geographic areas and that they believe prevent their efforts in planting their own Apostolic churches. Spiritual warfare around the globe includes the goal of taking control of cities through the expulsion of witches and demons, and the conversion of Roman Catholics, Jews, Muslims, and all other religions. They also believe that there must be a civil war in the Protestant church in order for them to purify that institution before Jesus can return. The movement has an extensive focus on youth, with several leaders specifically prophesying that those born after 1973 are to be the trainers and warriors for God’s army.
Link here to chronological list of the over 50 stories on Sarah Palin published at Talk To Action
http://www.talk2action.org/story/2008/9/5/114652/6239
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:42 pm
Surveyor’s Symbol?!!! Give me a break. If that is true then Sarah won’t mind this shirt: http://tinyurl.com/palinscrosshairs
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 12:46 pm
Agreed with Lane on the “baloney” of those being survey marks. I worked a survey crew when I was younger. Not a chance in hell.
And is it just me, or is anyone else seeing the ad for a Barska Riflescope Sale with this article. I realise that the site does not have any control over the Google ads, but damn, that was…funny? ironic? weird?
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 2:49 pm
Dennis –
That’s exactly what’s happening – it’s the left that’s doing it – it’s the left that’s saying “it’s a start” or “she got what she was asking for”
Dennis you are not only a shameless fraud – you are a complete dick.
How much of an intellectual leap is it for you to put a map with gunsights over democratic congress people or use targets of elected congress people as targets at a republican fundraiser held at a shooting range and not expect something like this to happen.
Dennis you are a complete tool – just shut the fuck up – let people mourn.
It doesn’t matter whether his politics are left or right – he took a gun to a public space and started shooting.
The right wing fear machine – Palin/Bachmann/Limbaugh/Beck and you – you little prick- are more than just a little responsible for creating the atmosphere that made this possible.
And those of us on the left – especially those of us with a public voice – have to shoulder some of the responsibility for letting you fuck-tards get away with it.
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 4:43 pm
And if you believe that, I’ve got a bridge to nowhere to sell you.
“This tragedy is being used by those on the Left and by their lapdog media to try to shut people up.”
Unlike Conservatives, who just shoot them.
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 6:49 pm
The T- Baggers and Republicans are REJOICING at this moment … TRUST ME on this folk’s .. Where’s all of John BONER’s tears on this issue?? There are NONE!! The Republicans are High Five-ing each other behind the lens of the FOX News Camera .. People like Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Rush Limpballs and Glenn Beck are fishing for Right Wing Christian TERRORIST!! Guess What ?? They found ANOTHER ONE last Saturday!! In reality this tragedy is no surprise.. It WILL keep happening again and again and again and again , UNTIL the FCC starts enforcing FACT’s rather then FOX and Reality rather then Rhetoric .. The daunting truth about the FCC is, that it is an organization payed by ALL taxpayers but OWNED by the Republicans.. We have turned America’s social investment into a Right Wing Feeding Trough .. This isn’t the first time that Social Investment has turned into Corporate Socialism . (Haliburton, Black Water, Goldman Sachs, Exxon, GE, Boeing ECT ECT ECT ECT ECT.. ) The terrible outcome of this is that there is a Dead 9 Year Old Girl. Dead Senior Citizens , Dead Women, a Dead Federal Judge and a Congress Woman that will NEVER be the same again.. The Right Wing T- Baggers LOVE THIS!!!!. DEMS!! Embrace The 2nd Amendment!!! WE’RE GONNA NEED IT!!
TRUST ME!!
Comment posted January 10, 2011 @ 7:13 pm
So what the Tea Party leaders are now saying is that what they say time and time again is not what they truly mean or stand for. I wonder if they are actualy able to sleep at night.
Comment posted January 11, 2011 @ 10:39 am
Sure, Dems have “targeted” opponents, too, and used violent imagery at times. It’s hard to argue that Democrats have done it with the same zeal as tea partiers and Republicans, though (ever heard of a Democrat bringing an AK-47 to a town hall meeting?). Still, don’t you think everyone, regardless of party affiliation, should drop the hyper-violent rhetoric, leave the guns at home and discuss our differences as our free and open democracy encourages? This tit for tat business, GOPSavage, is unproductive and immature. We, as a nation, need to grow up.
Comment posted January 11, 2011 @ 11:49 am
What the people defending Palin conveniently forget is that she engaged in violent rhetoric long before she up the crosshairs graphic. They like to strip out the context, but context matters. That Giffords herself told Palin to back off — to no effect of course — is pretty damning.
The far right will continue to love Palin, but her presidential trial balloon is deflating.
Comment posted January 12, 2011 @ 10:19 pm
They started replacing surveyor sights with lasers back in the 70s. This denial is a joke, and a bad one at that.
Her rhetoric has been riddled with gun and hunting references. To deny it at this point is nothing more than a juvenile attempt to save face.
Comment posted January 17, 2011 @ 6:17 pm
Yeah sure she meant a surveyors sights, especially when she spewed the order to “reload” so….how do you reload a surveyors scope?
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