Attack on Democracy in Arizona

I first met Gary Ritterstein when he was working as Communications Director for Joe Sestak's Senate campaign. Today he's a communications strategist who we're trying to persuade to share some of his insights here at DWT. His first guest post:

When a self-described terrorist fired shots into a crowd of folks at a political town hall event, the 20 victims included a Federal Court judge who was among those killed and a Member of our U.S. House of Representatives who remains among those fighting for their life. The rest of the victims of this massacre were political staffers, supporters just like you and me, who just want to participate in our great democracy, and passersby.
 
This tragedy is a somber reminder of the dangers we face from some on the fringe who are all too willing to adopt violence as a form of protest. Time will tell what specific factors were at play. No matter what we find out about this killer, no amount of understanding will bring loved ones back. Thankfully, due to the heroism of so many Arizonans, a monster remains behind bars, awaiting prosecution to the fullest extent of the law.
 
What can help, as we’ve responded to terrorism before, is taking steps to prevent another attack. As we try to make sense of this horrific shooting, the threats of violence continue. Police arrested another man who reportedly threatened to take the life of Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) and his staff. FBI Director Bob Mueller, who has taken charge of the investigation, said at a news conference:

“The ubiquitous nature of the Internet means that not only threats but also hate speech and other inciteful speech is much more readily available to individuals… That absolutely presents a challenge for us, particularly when it results in what would be lone wolves or lone offenders undertaking attacks.”

The threats of violence are very real. This past March, the FBI arrested eight militia members for an “insidious plan” to kill law enforcement officers in hopes of inciting an anti-government uprising. “This is an example of radical and extremist fringe groups which can be found throughout our society,” Special Agent Andrew Arena said to the New York Times.
 
Hopefully, moving forward we’ll worry more about terrorism than political correctness. Just about a year before the FBI bust, too many pundits on the right condemned the DHS for reporting on “right-wing” extremism. Apparently, they objected to calling out the extreme right for its association with anti-democracy hostilities as many-- paricularly those who make their livelihood from stoking it on radio and TV-- do now. So to those who share these sentiments, will you now denounce public figures who gin up their anti-government rhetoric?
 
Regardless of labels, we ignore the threats at our own peril. These terrorists aren’t Republican or Democrats, or even Americans in any legitimate sense of the word. An all too common theme is simply a warped view of those who serve our democracy. These warped views could range from blaming President Bush for the 9/11 attacks to portraying President Obama as some sort of Anti-Christ Neo Communist Muslim mole. It just so happens that when Democrats are in office, there seems to be more attention on the threats to Democrats and vice versa for Republicans. Responding to these threats is better for both.

It’s troubling to see too many public figures on both sides, knowing full well these threats exist, draw parallels between political opponents and terrorists or communists, only to couple the smears with a call to arms, revolution or seccession. These false equivalencies are a slap in the face to our Founding Fathers, those who shed blood in the anti-slavery Civil War and all the heroes of all attacks on government workers. Extremists, some with violent tendencies, find aid and comfort for their anti-democracy hostilities when they take this rhetoric too seriously.
 
God help any of public figure who intends for something like this to happen. Far be it for any of us to try to know what’s in someone’s heart. For all we know, these folks just get carried away with words, as we all do at times. That was the point of Jon Stewart’s Rally to Restore Sanity. Maybe it’s time to take that rally on tour or hosting a Restore Sanity Party of our own.
 
Jon Stewart, in his response to the Arizona shooting, called for us all to take what we say more seriously, so as not to be confused with those that are deranged. For all the left’s criticism of Fox News, Roger Ailes recently joined the call to “tone things down.” Even Glenn Beck signed a pledge that includes denouncing violence, the belief in violence as an answer, and the threats and calls for the destruction of our system.
 
While we can all get carried away in the heat of the moment, some on the left came too close to directly attributing the violence to the rhetoric just as some on the right came too close to defending it. One Tuscon Tea Party leader claimed to Talking Points Memo, “[She] didn't hear anything [in the 2010 campaign] that concerned [her] in terms of inciting violence.” This just isn’t an opinion shared by most on both sides, who put our patriotism ahead of our politics. Even the head of the Mohave County Tea Party admitted, “those words… we know what we mean but we have to be clear what we mean, and in next few weeks, as this all plays out, people will be more understanding.”
 
The real debate in the coming weeks will be over what we do about it. Before we get ahead of ourselves with gun restrictions, FCC censorship, law enforcement, and the rest, I propose we start with Congressional hearings to uncover where enemies with anti-democracy hostilities find aid and comfort. You can sign the petition here: http://chn.ge/h2lfr6. Of course, some will dial up the McCarthyism rhetoric to demonize the idea of finding thoughtful solutions. Nevertheless, these hearings can be done in a bipartisan way, just like the 9/11 commission. Hopefully, what will come of it is that more media and political organizations will get behind a reasonable response to emerging threats before they manifest themselves in violence.

While we can take measures to prevent some attacks, anti-democracy hostilities will continue to breed violence among some nuts on the fringe who can get carried away with the notions of bankrupting our public investments, freezing government operations, destabilizing markets, and ignoring the liberty of our fellow man. When the only end to their agenda is anarchy, history teaches us that the one thing standing in the way is our Constitutional democracy. The only thing standing in the way is ‘we the people.’

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