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"Kill him" allegation at Palin event unfounded.

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RandFan

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Secret Service says "Kill him" allegation unfounded

SCRANTON – The agent in charge of the Secret Service field office in Scranton said allegations that someone yelled “kill him” when presidential hopeful Barack Obama’s name was mentioned during Tuesday’s Sarah Palin rally are unfounded.

The Scranton Times-Tribune first reported the alleged incident on its Web site Tuesday and then again in its print edition Wednesday. The first story, written by reporter David Singleton, appeared with allegations that while congressional candidate Chris Hackett was addressing the crowd and mentioned Obama’s name a man in the audience shouted “kill him."

News organizations including ABC, The Associated Press, The Washington Monthly and MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann reported the claim, with most attributing the allegations to the Times-Tribune story.

Agent Bill Slavoski said he was in the audience, along with an undisclosed number of additional secret service agents and other law enforcement officers and not one heard the comment.

“I was baffled,” he said after reading the report in Wednesday’s Times-Tribune.

He said the agency conducted an investigation Wednesday, after seeing the story, and could not find one person to corroborate the allegation other than Singleton.
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Oh well, we'll believe it anyway. Why not?
 
BTW, would that be considered a crime, or is it covered by the first amendment?

The reporter is sticking by his story. Hard to tell. Maybe the crowd noise was loud so that the yeller could only be heard easily within a small radius that included the reporter?
 
Puppycow said:
BTW, would that be considered a crime, or is it covered by the first amendment?

The reporter is sticking by his story. Hard to tell. Maybe the crowd noise was loud so that the yeller could only be heard easily within a small radius that included the reporter?
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Incitement to violence is a crime.
 
I was thinking of starting a thread like this myself when I saw this news.

I can't help but feel that this is a very serious and bold claim, and should really demand some kind of tangible evidence (or at the very least, some corroboration between multiple trustworthy sources, such as reporters at the event), before being simply accepted as accurate.

I know in the minds of those who are convinced that most on the right are racists, such a burden of proof may not be required. But it should be. This is a serious allegation.

I could probably dig up dozens of anecdotal tales of people (even reporters) who have seen UFO's. Their stories wouldn't fly here without evidence.

If it was just started by someone without any merit, that is indefensible and irresponsible.

I don't doubt the possiblity that this really happened. But I find that it was accepted as factual far too quickly and easily.

This whole thing bothers me greatly.
 
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Whiplash said:
I know in the minds of those who are convinced that most on the right are racists, such a burden of proof may not be required. But it should be. This is a serious allegation.
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My views on republicans is influenced by the people i know. My boss is a diehard rush loving republican and has used the n word to talk about obama and just about anyone on the street he sees that is of color.


Yes, a racist republican is a sterotype, but when i have to deal with the real life sterotype every day, it doesn't quite seem like one anymore.
 
From that video - it sure looks like McCain didn't like what he heard, whatever it was. Sounds like "kill him" to me as much as anything. Maybe it is "Villian"?
 
Whatever it is, it definitely is not unfounded, it seems very likely that someone heard that as "kill him".

ETA: Wait a minute - what is McCain doing at Palin's rally?

ETA: Oh.. different rally! Too bad no-one was recording the Palin rally??!?!
 
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Oliver said:
Why oh why? :rolleyes:
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Maybe because incitement to violence can lead to violence?

By the way, your avatar seems to be making fun of the fact that McCain can't lift his arms very high. That is tactless.
 
It's interesting. I heard audio of these recordings on the radio. (Randi Rhodes? I think so.) And I clearly heard "kill him". Listening to the links here, I can't hear it.

Was it "enhanced" audio on the show, or was the suggestion she made before the tape was played sufficiently strong to influence my hearing? I say this because I was baffled at the news story of the Secret Service saying there was no evidence it happened. I had heard the tape, and heard it clearly, or so I believed.
 
To the Secret Service, it's a vital issue and a practical one: are there real threats that they have to deal with?

So, they may be correct in stating that there is no credible threat in this case.

To me, and others, what's astonishing is the obvious depth and intensity of hatred and suspicion of Obama, and more broadly, all he seems to represent.

This issue doesn't turn on one word. You can read a post by Kurious Kathy, for example, to see the same kind of thinking.

McCain's campaign helped to rouse this beast. Now they have to back-pedal.
 
Hi, I'm from the Secret Service. I'm investigating whether someone made a threat against Barack Obama. Did anyone hear anything?

No?

So much for that.



The Secret Service is keeping the press away from the crowds at Palin rallies.

There was actually a second instance of the same "kill him!" line being uttered at a Palin rally in Scranton Tuesday, according to the local paper. I don't think the candidates can be blamed for any one of these nutcases (nor do I think they're serious threats worthy of investigation by the Secret Service) but they do bear responsibility for the overall tenor of the rallies, which has on many occasions been grotesque.

...Glad you asked, because I saw this earlier. This is actually about the incident in Scranton, not the one in Clearwater, Fla, that I wrote about here.

I wasn't at the Scranton event, but I have to say the Secret Service is in dangerous territory here. In cooperation with the Palin campaign, they've started preventing reporters from leaving the press section to interview people in the crowd. This is a serious violation of their duty -- protecting the protectee -- and gets into assisting with the political aspirations of the candidate. It also often makes it impossible for reporters to get into the crowd to question the people who say vulgar things. So they prevent reporters from getting near the people doing the shouting, then claim it's unfounded because the reporters can't get close enough to identify the person.
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So now the press says there are two incidents of "Kill him" being yelled out at a Palin rally. When you look at some of the people getting unfettered access to a video camera, is it really all that surprising?

But, RandFan, you go ahead and believe what the Secret Service said, even though they're appealing to their own authority to prove that negative.
 
boloboffin said:
But, RandFan, you go ahead and believe what the Secret Service said, even though they're appealing to their own authority to prove that negative.
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Well, that's kinda what they're there for. To investigate those sorts of threats.
 
boloboffin said:
But, RandFan, you go ahead and believe what the Secret Service said, even though they're appealing to their own authority to prove that negative.
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Believe what you want about RandFan, but I don't see where he indicates he "believes" what the Secret Service said. What I see is RandFan suggesting we shouldn't believe the original claim so hastily.
 
Slayhamlet said:
Someone clearly says "terrorist" after McCain asks "who is the real Barack Obama?" I don't hear "kill him", although someone else says something at the same time which I can't make out.
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That was my take on it, too, only it sounded like several someones said something at the same time.

"Kill him" doesn't even make sense in context of the question at that point. (But if someone were to shout "kill him" I don't suppose it would need to make sense.)

I see no reason to doubt the Secret Service's assertion on this.
 
BenBurch said:
Calling him a terrorist is the equivalent of calling for his death in any case. Shows the sort of stuff core Repubs are made of - I've never met one I would trust with my money or my liberties.
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Ben, you're no different than they are. Together, you are the problem.

Listen to yourself! You've never met a Republican you would trust with your money or liberties? Are you really that bigoted (and yes, I do mean bigoted) towards people who don't share your political outlook?

I know Republicans I would trust with my life, people I count as some of my closest and dearest friends. There are Democrats for whom I'd say the same.

This talk-radioesque attitude of completely demonizing anyone and everyone on "the other side" is absolutely disgusting. You're no different than Hannity or Boortz or Coulter, only you're waving a Democratic flag rather than a Republican one.

Take a step back, and look in the mirror. I don't think you'll like what you see.
 
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