Steve Scalise
Rep. Steve Scalise, R-LA, is announced onto the field at the start of the 57th Congressional Baseball Game at National’s Park in Washington, 6/14/18. On June 14, 2017, Scalise and some other Congressional members were victims of a shooting at the baseball field they were practicing on in Alexandria, Va. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)
Over the last month or so since Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has skyrocketed in state and national polls and won the New Hampshire primary, other Democratic candidates, their surrogates and some in the mainstream media have turned to criticizing him for the obnoxious and sometimes belligerent behavior of some of his more fanatical supporters, otherwise known as “Bernie Bros.”
The issue even came up during Wednesday’s Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas. Here’s how Sanders responded when the issue was brought up last night by MSNBC anchor Hallie Jackson:
SANDERS: We have over 10.6 million people on Twitter, and 99.9 percent of them are decent human beings, are working people, are people who believe in justice, compassion, and love. And if there are a few people who make ugly remarks, who attack trade union leaders, I disown those people. They are not part of our movement.
But let me also say what I hope my friends up here will agree with is that if you look at the wild west of the internet, talk to some of the African-American women on my campaign. Talk to Senator Nina Turner. Talk to others and find the vicious, racist, sexist attacks that are coming their way, as well.
So I would hope that all of us understand that we should do everything we possibly can to end the viciousness and ugliness on the internet. Our campaign is about issues. It’s about fighting for the working families and the middle class. It is not about vicious attacks on other people.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, a Democrat, weighed in on the Twitter machine a short time after the debate concluded to ask for examples of a Bernie Bro being “unusually mean or rude” because he says he has never come across any:
I have never seen @BernieSanders supporters being unusually mean or rude. Can someone send me an example of a “Bernie Bro” being bad. Also, are we holding all candidates responsible for the behavior of some of their supporters? Waiting to hear.
— Keith Ellison (@keithellison) February 20, 2020
House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (LA), who was the victim of an assassination attempt along with some other House and Senate Republicans and aides by a deranged Bernie Sanders supporter during a baseball practice game in the summer of 2017, responded accordingly:
I can think of an example. https://t.co/KwuvyYgyGw
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) February 20, 2020
My RedState colleague T. LaDuke characterized Scalise’s tweet as belonging in the “mic drop Hall of Fame.” I concur.
What’s especially pathetic about Ellison’s tweet is that he was actually a member of Congress when it happened. He knows.
Furthermore, Ellison claims to want to know if all candidates are supposed to be held responsible for the behavior of their supporters, but he already knows the answer to that, too. The answer is “yes”, but only if the wrongdoing or act of violence that has been committed can somehow be twisted and blamed on Republicans, especially President Trump.
But when the perpetrator can be shown to have been influenced by a Democrat, the news quickly flies off the front pages after a couple of days and we hear nothing else of it. Double standards and all that, of course.
