Social networking site explodes with assassination threats against Romney

http://www.examiner.com/article/social-networking-site-explodes-with-assassination-threats-against-romney

Social networking site explodes with assassination threats against Romney

• death threats against conservatives
• October 8, 2012
• By: Anthony Martin

A popular Internet social networking site exploded with assassination threats against Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney Saturday night, prompting one attorney to contact the Secret Service and the FBI.

In any election year an increase in assassination threats is common. But this year the threats have taken a distinctively more ominous tone and appear to be more stark and blatant given that citizens can see the actual messages on their computer screens, if they use common social networking sites such as Twitter.

The threats prompted an attorney in South Carolina, the former executive director of the S.C. Republican Party, to take action.

Todd Kincannon, the attorney in question, noted the threats and began to forward the Twitter messages directly to the Secret Service and the FBI.

The dire nature of the threats represents a growing phenomenon among those who are self-described as "liberal" on social networking sites. While some conservatives also engage in the threatening behavior, some observers say that the majority of the messages and death threats come from the liberal side of politics.

For example, when former Fox News reporter and White House Press Secretary Tony Snow announced he was suffering from cancer, social networking sites and other online venues exploded with messages from liberals who sent death wishes to Snow, expressing the hope that he would die a prolonged and painful death.

Snow served briefly as the press secretary for former President George W. Bush.

When former Vice President Dick Cheney suffered a heart attack several years back, and then later received a heart transplant, the messages of hate piled on once again. One of MSNBC's liberal talk show hosts, Ed Schultz, stated that he wished Cheney would die due to the fact that he is a "war criminal." Schultz further stated that he wished to rip Cheney's heart out of his chest, stomp on it, and put it back in.

The following is a sampling of the messages Kincannon captured on his screen on Twitter Saturday night, forwarding them to the Secret Service and the FBI (Warning, objectionable language):

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
RT @sistertoldjah: @SecretService RT @iAmBenjisLady: If Romney wins Ima Shoot his ass Its Gonna Be another JFK insident
8 Oct 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
cc: @SecretService MT @Haunter_: Romney is trying to ban tampons. Omg. I'm not even kidding, someone go with me so we can shoot him dead.
8 Oct 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
cc: @secretservice @twitchyteam RT @ana_escobar12: RT @damdaisy_xo: If i could i would murder mitt romney #idgaf #hatethatwhiteracistfuck
8 Oct 12

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
cc: @secretservice @twitchyteam RT @steadybankin: I’ll shoot mitt romney & both of his knee caps & smack his ass with the BuRner til he die
8 Oct 12

Life $tyle.@LiftedBoy_
I crash that fucking airplane that that faggot nigga Romney, stab Mrs. Romney in her GOD DAMN esophagus. & won’t stop until the cops come in
6 Oct 12

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
cc: @SecretService @TwitchyTeam RT @Teddy_NikeBoy: Just want yal ta know...if Romney win we still gone be cool....CUZ IM A SNIPE HIS ASS!!
8 Oct 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
cc: @SecretService @TwitchyTeam RT @JCBaltodano: If Romney wins the elections I will start a national riot to kill his ass!
8 Oct 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite

Todd Kincannon@ToddKincannon
cc: @secretservice @twitchyteam RT @sober_liven: I just wanna assassinate Romney… I hate him.
8 Oct 12

Lines of Coke@Cocoa_9mm
Romney need his white ass kneecaps blown off black ppl ain‘t the problem it’s lazy rich mufuckas like him who never scrubbed a pot before!!!
3 Oct 12

The threats listed above, and many others like them, are illegal and constitute felonies. Writing or speaking a direct threat of violence toward a public figure in the United States, particularly an elected official, is a federal crime and punishable by stiff prison sentences.

Kincannon stated that not only did he forward the Twitter messages to federal law enforcement but that he spoke directly to officials in the Secret Service Sunday morning.

ALERT!

A new entry in my regular series Musings After Midnight is now posted at my blog, The Liberty Sphere. It's titled "The Proverbial Line in the Sand and Contingency Plans, or, Thinking the Unthinkable."

Visit my ministry site at Martin Christian Ministries.
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