Republican Arizona Rep. David Schweikert says he received more death threats in 2017 than every other year he’s been in office combined.
“My fear is this is the playbook of a lot of our brothers and sisters on the left—they’re going to get fringier and fringier, louder and louder, angrier and angrier, and as you and I know, we sometimes have some folks in our society who aren’t completely healthy,” Schweikert said while appearing on “Plaidcast,” a podcast hosted by Republican Rep. Sean Duffy of Wisconsin.
“And we had more death threats last year, in my office, even one towards my little girl, than we’ve ever had in all the other years combined and my fear is that this rage that is being generated for political turnout is actually really becoming unhealthy for our political society,” Schweikert continued.
The Arizona congressman has served in Congress since 2011.
“It’s incredibly troubling, because I’ve had threats against my family and my children as well—horrible things said,” Duffy agreed. “We know what happened to [House Majority Whip] Steve Scalise last year and our baseball team and with that, I don’t think the left recognizes that this isn’t the way the system was set up.”
“We’re supposed to debate, we’re supposed to argue, and we can be passionate, but then we go vote and we have elections and after we have winners we kind of step back and let them govern,” Duffy said.
More
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
ReplyDeleteOfficeholders and filed candidates for public office, without regard to their party, should not have to be subject to this level of crazy.
Find them and prosecute; jail time of significance and no plea deals. Invoke Federal Civil Rights laws. That will dramatically lower the threats.
The candidates and elected officials will still be the same mixed bag but threats against them are threats against the theory and operation of our republic.