Was he justified? The Andrew Hitt situation got my attention this week. He is the former chair of the Republican Party in Wisconsin. He worked tirelessly for the reelection of Donald Trump. He said sometimes the calls started at 6:30 in the morning and did not end until 10:30 at night.
After the election, he was told to prepare a list of alternative electors in case the courts ruled the election was fraudulent. He went ahead with developing the false list out of the fear of Trump supporters.“Can you imagine the repercussions if the legal challenges were correct and I was responsible for Trump not being elected? (paraphrase)”
The legal challenges failed but he says he was tricked into continuing as a fake elector. He also said he is confident Trump lost Wisconsin.
I am concerned that the Chairman of the Republican Party in Wisconsin, a man who worked tirelessly for Trump was so afraid of Trump supporters that he went ahead with an illegal process to protect himself and his family. Was he justified in fearing repercussions?
In Arizona. Clint Hickman, an official who helped lead Arizona’s largest county through some of the most difficult moments of the pandemic and the 2020 election, says the current moment in American life feels like the right one to quit.
Hickman, a Republican, voted to certify Maricopa’s elections in 2020 despite an aggressive campaign from former president Donald Trump and his allies to reject the results and throw the state toward the Republican candidate over Joe Biden, who narrowly won in Arizona.
“After the election in 2020, it’s gotten worse and worse,” he said. “I started to feel like all I get to do is play defense in this job any more … I thought I was looking way too much in the rearview mirror.”
He faced credible death threats, one of which resulted in a two and a half-year prison sentence for an Iowa man.
Source article: Top Maricopa county official quits as election looms: ‘All I do is play defense’ | Arizona | The Guardian
Also in Arizona, Ray Epps a Trump supporter was accused by Tucker Carlson of being an FBI enabler in the February 6 attack. He and his wife live in hiding for fear of repercussions.
In Georgia, Brad Raffensberger is the Republican head of elections and was a donor in support of Trump. He also is the person who had to tell Trump he lost in Georgia. He could not find the additional votes Trump requested.
That prompted Trump to suggest the refusal to expose mass voter fraud in Georgia – which Trump insisted existed but did not exist – could be a “criminal offense”.
“That’s a big risk to you,” Trump said. “That’s a big risk.”
Raffensberger believed that to be a threat and indeed he and his family have received many threats.
Also, false claims of election fraud by Rudy Guiliani led to a civil suit and ultimately his bankruptcy. The falsely accused poll workers in the case have received many threats.
In Pennsylvania, election officials have borne the brunt of cyber-attacks and physical threats. The FBI warns the state with the most credible threats against election workers is Pennsylvania.
Mike Pence. When the rioters stormed the Capitol, they could be heard chanting “Hang Mike Pence.”
Conclusion. I think Hitt has a good case for being afraid. If you believe the election was a fraud, was stolen and Trump actually won, I hope you do not support threats as the way to disagree in a civilized society. To those who believe Biden won the election, the threats are seen as opposition to the peaceful transition of power. Opposition to the peaceful transition of power is a serious problem for a democracy.
Misinformation about the Chiefs’ celebration. Two juveniles were detained following the shooting at the celebration for the Kansas City victory in the Super Bowl. Sadly, Ann Coulter claimed their color was being hidden. She believed obviously they were Black. If they were white the color would have been released.
She was wrong. In order to follow the rule of law in Missouri, the identity of juveniles has to be protected. Officials were following the law.
Today, two adult shooting suspects were arrested. Their names and pictures were immediately shown upon their arrest.
Even more unfortunate was the posting of the photo of a man, seated, with his arms behind his back and flanked by law enforcement officers and the caption “One of the Kansas City Chiefs victory parade shooters has been identified as an illegal alien.” The post was by congressman Tim Burchette on his social media site. The post received over 1.4 million views.
However, the man in the photos is Denton Loudermill. He’s an Olathe, Kansas native, a father of three daughters, and a proud Chiefs fan. He’s not a mass shooter. He is not an illegal alien.
He has received death threats. Misinfomation can have very negative consequences.
Source article: Chiefs fan falsely ID’d by GOP congressman as parade shooter getting death threats: report (msn.com)
This and That
Illegal immigrant health care. I have seen many cries about tax dollars being spent on health care for illegal immigrants. Since current federal policy prohibits federal tax funding of health care going to unauthorized immigrants through either Medicaid or Obamacare, I was curious about the facts in the situation. I wanted to check against confirmation bias. In my research I came across what I believe to be an article that gives a good statement of facts.
The article is very detailed, with many facts. I did not closely check the data. However, I believe the author provides clear evidence to establish that billions of tax dollars are going into health care in support of illegal immigrants. I am glad I looked for facts.
I did not realize it, but probably should have – If congress approves money for Ukraine, the majority of it will be spent in America on jobs making weapons and ammunition.
Good News
Wonderful stories
A Mother’s Love Sparks A Miracle, Daughter Wakes Up After 5 Years In Coma (sunnyskyz.com)
A First Grader Was Crying On Pajama Day. His Bus Driver Came To The Rescue (sunnyskyz.com)
Peace
Jerry
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