Media, Democrats’ history of incendiary SCOTUS rhetoric prior to Kavanaugh assassination attempt
The liberal media and Democratic politicians have engaged in heated rhetoric when it comes to their feelings on Brett Kavanaugh and the Supreme Court.
Democratic politicians and their allies in the media have come under scrutiny for incendiary rhetoric in regard to the Supreme Court, protests, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who recently came under threat of violence from an armed man.
Nicholas John Roske, 26, of Simi Valley, California, had a gun, ammunition, a knife, pepper spray, a screwdriver, zip ties, and other gear when he was arrested by Montgomery County Police Wednesday morning, according to a criminal complaint.
The media reacted in a variety of different ways to the news, but members never highlighted their own instances of charged language as a possible motivator for the assassination attempt.
CNN’s Whitney Wild, following news of the attempt on Kavanaugh’s life, said that Supreme Court justices "certainly" could be at threat from violent extremists in the coming months. However, Wild asserted that the risk of violence "truly comes from both sides of the abortion debate." Kavanaugh has frequently been painted as bent on overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade case.
ALLEGED KAVANAUGH ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT LATEST INSTANCE OF VIOLENCE, INTIMIDATION TOWARD PRO-LIFERS
Speaking with Fox News Digital, media analyst and contributor Joe Concha called the media disinterest in Kavanaugh’s attacker both "sad and pathetic."
"If a Republican senator or lawmaker had attacked a liberal Justice like Sotomayor or Kagan or Jackson, declared without ambiguity that ‘they will pay the price,’ it is virtually guaranteed you would see wall-to-wall coverage if an attempt was made on their lives," he said, referring to then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's, D-N.Y., comments in 2020 about conservative justices, including Kavanaugh.
On Thursday, ABC’s "The View" host Whoopi Goldberg criticized the heated political rhetoric of "both sides."
"But in this climate, don't we all have to, like, take a beat and really pay attention from both sides? Because we both are guilty of it. Both sides are guilty of doing this," Goldberg said. "There are consequences to what you say, and you should be more careful."
Pro-choice activists protest outside the house of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in Chevy Chase Maryland, on Sept. 13, 2021, following the court's decision to uphold an abortion law in Texas. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images | Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images)
During a floor speech, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said the "reckless" and "apocalyptic" rhetoric from media critics since the SCOTUS draft leak was responsible for the incident and called for tighter security.
During an interview on "America Reports" Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Esther Salas said the Kavanaugh incident highlights the urgency to pass the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act, which would bolster privacy protections for federal judges and impose restrictions on the sale or dissemination of federal judges’ personal information, with criminal penalties.
"I think that members of Congress can see the escalation in the numbers of threats against judicial officers," she told host John Roberts. "It’s just got to stop."
Police officers look on as pro-choice advocates demonstrate outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on May 18, 2022, in Chevy Chase, Maryland. (Bonnie Cash/Getty Images)
Salas’ 20-year-old son Daniel was killed in a racially motivated attack on her New Jersey home nearly two years ago. The man responsible was upset over her handling of a case.
Journalist Glenn Greenwald tweeted Wednesday that it was "vital" to determine which "cable hosts" the armed assailant liked in order to figure out "who radicalized him." He then called out MSNBC's Joy Reid by name.
"We don’t yet know if this would-be Kavanaugh murderer watches Joy Reid’s show — chances are very high he didn’t since virtually nobody does — but she regularly calls the Justice a Christian nationalist who favors theocracy. Did this inspire violence?" Greenwald tweeted.
Past rhetoric from some politicians and members of the media has done little to turn down the temperature in an already volatile political climate, particularly around the Supreme Court and abortion.
"This did not take place in a political vacuum, Democrats have a years-long effort to delegitimize and demonize the Supreme Court, through vile obstruction of nominations, as happened with Justice Kavanaugh, and threats to pack the court," Cornell Law School professor William A. Jacobson said when discussing the topic with Fox News Digital. "That an unhinged activist would act violently against this backdrop was not surprising."
He added that the political rhetoric from Democrats, circulating a judge’s address on the internet and organizing protests outside their homes "posed a substantial risk of violence."
PRO-LIFE GROUP SAYS KAVANAUGH'S ALLEGED WOULD-BE ASSASSIN 'ACTED' ON SCHUMER'S WORDS
In addition, The Department of Homeland Security issued a warning on Tuesday that the high court's abortion ruling, the ongoing immigration crisis, and the midterm elections, could lead to domestic extremist violence.
In May, Law and Policy senior editor Imani Gandy joined CNN Newsroom, where she said of the leaked opinion draft: "I hope there will be a national uprising, but I’m concerned that the stomach for that isn’t there."
"The View’s" Joy Behar was particularly enthusiastic about pro-choice protesters surrounding the homes of SCOTUS justices, forcing them to stay inside. She said last month that protesters blocking Justice Samuel Alito from leaving his home would show him "what it feels like to lose your freedom of choice."
"He cannot leave the house easily. So maybe that's a good lesson for them," she added.
A pro-choice advocate holds a clothes hanger while passing the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh on May 18, 2022, in Chevy Chase, Maryland. (Bonnie Cash/Getty Images)
Far-left comedian Samantha Bee, during her TBS show last month, mocked conservatives calling for civility and urging people not to unnecessarily dial up the tension as protesters repeatedly lined up outside the homes of justices.
"In my civilest way possible may I humbly request that you f--- the f--- off? How dare Republicans demand civility as they strip away our civil rights," she said.
In December, Vice President Kamala Harris told the San Francisco Chronicle, "I don’t want to sound alarmist, I mean this: Women will die."
Hillary Clinton tweeted on May 2 that the decision "will kill and subjugate women even as a vast majority of Americans think abortion should be legal."
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The media and politicians have also specifically targeted Kavanaugh in their political rants, particularly in the aftermath of his wrenching confirmation hearings when he denied Christine Blasey Ford's sexual assault allegation.
In a now infamous clip, a 2020 Schumer angrily singled out Justices Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch.
"I want to tell you, Gorsuch, I want to tell you, Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind, and you will pay the price," he said at a rally for pro-choice supporters.
In 2018, late night comedian Jimmy Kimmel also dug into Kavanaugh. He told his audience it was only fair that if the then-nominee was elevated to the nation’s high court, then it was only fair he should have his "pesky penis"chopped off.
Fox News' Yael Halon and Bradford Betz contributed to this report.
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