Steve and Karen Slaton, who run a Trump paraphernalia store in Arizona, told a BBC News reporter they “don’t want to take up arms. But if Republicans lose in November this elderly Arizona couple say a civil war is coming and, yes, they will fight. They have discussed it between them, and feel that taking up arms is their best option.” I don’t understand why they think so.
The reporter also talked to a supervisor of elections in Georgia who’s received threats. One letter said, “This election is effing rigged. Detonations will occur at every polling site in this county. No one at these places will be spared. If you think we’re bluffing, effing try. You’ve been warned. We will end you all.” The FBI suggested parking her car next to her office window to buffer any explosions. Read story here.
Our system of government is predicated on peaceful voting and transfer of power. If we don’t want to live in a society ruled by warlords and rife with political violence, that system must be defended with all of the government’s resources. It should begin with law enforcement, but so far the government isn’t doing enough to stop this before it gets out of hand.
The FBI created a task force to track down threats against election workers, but only a handful of arrests have been made. A more aggressive effort is needed, and judges and juries need to do their part, too. The person who wrote that letter should spend years in prison.
The Slatons told the reporter things could “get ugly” here. The way some Republicans talk, it conceivably could happen. In that case, the government should invoke the Insurrection Act and use military force against private militias attacking our basic rights and freedoms. The best way to avoid needing to do this is vigorously prosecuting political violence before it gets that far.