In this so-called post-racial America, we have seen the number of death threats made against the sitting president, Barack Obama, increase exponentially. This has made the job of protecting the commander in chief even more difficult. The threats are coming from both fanatics and the so-called respected participants on the right of America’s political discourse. In most cases the language is vehemently inflammatory, untrue and flat-out ridiculous.
The United States Secret Service has just released information that shows a strong correlation between a rise in potential and actual death threats against the president and remarks made by Sarah Palin, John McCain’s former vice presidential running mate.
Palin’s attacks on President Obama, including specific comments regarding his patriotism, led to an increase in threats against Obama during the last weeks of his presidential campaign, when Palin accused him of “palling around with terrorists.”
The report, which was released by Stratfor Global Intelligence, an independent, non-ideological intelligence organization, said that Palin’s dissentious and incendiary tone may have unwittingly emboldened white supremacists and other hate groups to plan attacks on Obama prior to his election. In fact, many on the 2008 campaign trail have asserted that her speeches often were replete with supporters yelling “kill” Obama as well as calling him a “terrorist.” This is one reason that John McCain mandated that Palin reduce the contentiousness of her remarks regarding Obama.
The main conclusion of the Stratfor report was that, “Two plots to assassinate Obama were broken up during the campaign season, and several more remain under investigation. We would expect federal authorities to uncover many more plots to attack the president that have been hatched by white supremacist ideologues.” –torrance stephens, ph.d.
