There should be strong condemnation of any threat or violence against any member of Congress, especially if it is based upon how he or she may have voted on any issue.
The United States Constitution guarantees many ways for citizens to express openly and peacefully their disagreement with any law or any lawmaker. It also guarantees citizens’ right to vote out lawmakers whose policies they oppose.
Therefore, there should be no physical intimidation of lawmakers, no matter where they stand on ObamaCare socialized medicine legislation or any issue.
Sadly, there have been incidents in which lawmakers’ offices have been vandalized or members of Congress have been threatened or otherwise menaced. Those who commit such acts should be prosecuted and jailed.
But with that said, the far greater numbers of Americans who peacefully oppose ObamaCare ought not to be browbeaten into silence by being lumped together with the lunatic fringe that may arise on any political issue.
The overwhelming majority of “Tea Party” activists, for instance, have stated their views without ever resorting to violence or threats of violence. Most are patriotic Americans who are deeply and rightly troubled by ObamaCare, and are channeling their outrage in appropriate ways, whether it be writing letters to their congressmen, attending meetings of like-minded citizens or donating to organizations that share their concerns. They need not apologize for that.
You may recall how radicals took part in angry demonstrations against the Iraq War just a few years ago. That certainly does not mean that every protester in those marches agreed with the radicals’ ideas. Nor should all opponents of ObamaCare be tarred as violent or threatening.
It is no surprise that the liberal news media are disproportionately playing up the illegal acts of a tiny minority. They want to paint opposition to ObamaCare as fanatical. But the vast majority of those who are against socialized medicine can hold their heads up high in the knowledge that they are merely peacefully practicing their constitutional rights of dissent and free speech.