Conservative Media Freaked Out Over DHS Report On Right Wing Extremists
When a Department of Homeland Security report on right-wing extremism was released earlier this year, the conservative media responded with outrage and mockery. In light of Wednesday's attack at the Washington D.C. Holocaust Museum, Fox News' anchor Shep Smith pointed out that "they warned us for a reason." Media Matters has looked back at how those warnings were ignored.
"There are no Timothy McVeighs out there right now," declared James Dobson on Fox News in April. "They're making a big deal out of something that hasn't happened and may not happen."
Fox News contributor Andrea Tantaros dismissed the report's findings as a "made up threat."
Joe Scarborough reacted with both anger and indignation, expressing shock that the report was "targeting veterans returning from war" while also laughing hysterically when it was brought up: "This is a funny story this is a laughably -- they're nuts, Janet Napolitano has gone nuts -- this is funny." LinkHere
"There are no Timothy McVeighs out there right now," declared James Dobson on Fox News in April. "They're making a big deal out of something that hasn't happened and may not happen."
Fox News contributor Andrea Tantaros dismissed the report's findings as a "made up threat."
Joe Scarborough reacted with both anger and indignation, expressing shock that the report was "targeting veterans returning from war" while also laughing hysterically when it was brought up: "This is a funny story this is a laughably -- they're nuts, Janet Napolitano has gone nuts -- this is funny." LinkHere
DHS Urged To Expedite Updated Report On Right Wing Extremism
Recent incidents of extremist violence claiming the lives of abortion provider George Tiller and a security guard at the Holocaust Museum have prompted calls for the Department of Homeland Security to accelerate the release of an updated report on right-wing extremism.
Amid howls that it had politicized national security, DHS stepped back from a mid-April report it had issued on domestic threats from fringe right-wing groups. "The report is no longer out there," Secretary Janet Napolitano told lawmakers, promising to have the report "replaced or redone in a much more useful and much more precise fashion."
Several weeks later, the findings of the original study have been proven prescient, specifically in its warnings about violent acts from anti-abortion zealots and anti-Semites. Now, demands for that follow-up have grown more urgent.
On Thursday, the judicial advocacy organization, People for the American Way, faxed a letter to Napolitano calling on the Department of Homeland Security Chief to "expedite the approval of the 'Rightwing Extremism' report and release a final version as soon as possible."
"Although the [original] report was withdrawn with the intent of being rewritten, the events of the last two weeks show that its core findings are fundamentally correct: 'The economic downturn and the election of the first African-American president present unique drivers for rightwing radicalization and recruitment.' The Department of Homeland Security is charged with protecting the security of all Americans, and it is essential for the American public to have the unvarnished truth about the rise of dangerous extremism in this country," read the letter from PFAW President Michael Keegan. LinkHere
Amid howls that it had politicized national security, DHS stepped back from a mid-April report it had issued on domestic threats from fringe right-wing groups. "The report is no longer out there," Secretary Janet Napolitano told lawmakers, promising to have the report "replaced or redone in a much more useful and much more precise fashion."
Several weeks later, the findings of the original study have been proven prescient, specifically in its warnings about violent acts from anti-abortion zealots and anti-Semites. Now, demands for that follow-up have grown more urgent.
On Thursday, the judicial advocacy organization, People for the American Way, faxed a letter to Napolitano calling on the Department of Homeland Security Chief to "expedite the approval of the 'Rightwing Extremism' report and release a final version as soon as possible."
"Although the [original] report was withdrawn with the intent of being rewritten, the events of the last two weeks show that its core findings are fundamentally correct: 'The economic downturn and the election of the first African-American president present unique drivers for rightwing radicalization and recruitment.' The Department of Homeland Security is charged with protecting the security of all Americans, and it is essential for the American public to have the unvarnished truth about the rise of dangerous extremism in this country," read the letter from PFAW President Michael Keegan. LinkHere
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 2:21 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home