Evan McMullin is a familiar face in Utah. Many people would recognize him. He ran for president in 2016 as an independent and got 21% of the vote there. This year he’s trying to unseat Sen. Mike Lee (R), a far-right reactionary. Although McMullin is a libertarian, he’s supported by Democrats, who didn’t nominate a candidate to help him defeat Lee. Utah is so deep-red a Democrat doesn’t have a chance there anyway.
Back in April, McMullin and his wife were driving home from a campaign event when, according to them, a man later identified as Jack Aaron Whelchel, 44, tried to force their vehicle into oncoming traffic and then pointed a gun at them for no apparent reason.
Whelchel is charged with a Class A misdemeanor for pointing the gun, and disorderly conduct, an infraction, for trying to push them into oncoming traffic. (Are you kidding me? Why isn’t this a felony?)
His attorney, Brixton Hakes, disputes he pointed a gun at the McMullins, but I don’t believe him, not least because Hakes admits his client “did place a firearm on the center console of the vehicle.” Huh.
Road rage, or political violence?
There’s no direct evidence that Whelchel knew who the McMullins were. But he might have. The McMullins say “we and Mr. Whelchel traveled along the same path for a number of miles … which initially seemed to be … someone … traveling along the same route as us” — until Whelchel “aggressively followed and chased us” without provocation. That suggests he may have followed them from the campaign event.
Whelchel’s attorney says his client thought the McMullins were following him. That doesn’t ring true. Why would people like them follow a guy in a big truck, when all they want is to go home?
Then there’s this: CNN says Whelchel has a history of posting “far-right memes and accusations against politicians he opposes,” and promoting political violence, on social media. (Read their story here.)
Imagine an angry, violent political extremist following a candidate on country roads, then trying to push his car into oncoming traffic and pointing a gun at him. Do we want to live in a country like that? Someone like that should be behind bars.
But suppose it was just road rage. Some guy who tried to kill a random motorist by forcing him into oncoming traffic, which would’ve killed the occupants of the oncoming vehicle, too. And then pointed a gun at the motorist and his wife. Do we want people like that on our highways, or behind bars?
Of course, anyone accused of a crime is entitled to a fair trial, and presumed innocent until found guilty, but I don’t understand the misdemeanor charges in this case. If If a jury sustains these charges, anyone who behaves like that should be locked up. None of us are safe with people like that on the loose.