Giffords Supporter Arrested for Death Threat to Tea Party Leader

Heroic Progressive Weirdo, or Pathetic Media Exploitee?

I'm just gonna suspend disbelief for a few minutes and pretend this story isn't too nutty to be true.

Twenty-four hours ago, Eric Fuller was a left wing martyr-hero still enjoying his fifteen minutes of media whoring fame. How quickly the narrative changes:

Two things are clear from Saturday's ABC News town hall meeting in Tucson. One: Tucsonans are eager to move forward and recover from last week's horrible shooting rampage. And two: that process is going to be slow and painful. That latter point was driven home by the arrest of a shooting victim, who threatened a speaker during the taping of the program.

ABC News Anchor Christiane Amanpour hosted the remarkable gathering of victims, heroes, witnesses and first responders. It was the first time most of them had been together since Jared Lee Loughner opened fire in a Safeway parking lot, killing 6, and wounding or injuring 14 others -- a rampage that happened one week earlier almost to the hour. ...

When Tucson Tea Party founder Trent Humphries rose to suggest that any conversation about gun control should be put off until after the funerals for all the victims, witnesses say Fuller became agitated. Two told KGUN9 News that finally, Fuller took a picture of Humphries, and said, "You're dead."

[Emphasis added]

Yes, this is the very same Eric Fuller nutjob who had been blaming Sarah Palin, John Boehner and Sharron Angle for the tragedy in Tuscon:

“It looks like Palin, Beck, Sharron Angle and the rest got their first target,” Eric Fuller said in an interview with Democracy NOW.

“Their wish for Second Amendment activism has been fulfilled — senseless hatred leading to murder, lunatic fringe anarchism, subscribed to by John Boehner, mainstream rebels with vengeance for all — even 9-year-old girls,” he added, referring to the death of Christina Taylor Green...

“I would put Sarah Palin in first place there. I think, really, she should be incarcerated for treason for advocating assassinating public officials,” Fuller said in an interview with Media Matters. “That map I saw that she published on the Internet had crosshairs on it and one of them was meant for Gabrielle Giffords.”

Yes, this is the same Eric Fuller who conspicuously supports Gabrielle Giffords:

Fuller, a 63-year-old veteran, had campaigned for Giffords during her reelection and was at the supermarket for her Congress on Your Corner event...

He added, “This woman is a spotless, purest, sweetest lamb in the world, gunned down … The only word I could think of is outraged.”

Weird. Do you think a restraining order could be in this guy's near future?

Shortly after Fuller's progressive everyman rants began hitting the airwaves, Fuller's delusional left wing comrades began making paranoid assumptions...

David Neiwert at Crooks and Liars:

"I wonder if Megyn Kelly or Bill O'Reilly will bring Fuller on Fox to browbeat him as they did Sheriff Dupnik for expressing the same view."

Eric Boehlert:

"Countdown to smearing wounded veteran from Tucson massacre begins… now."

Charles Johnson at LGF:

"Now watch as Andrew Breitbart, Jim Hoft, and the rest of the right wing blogosphere go into overdrive to smear Mr. Fuller."

Sweet, sweet Mr. Fuller... We'll protect you from the teabaggers!

Now Arizona's second most famous psycho has completely discredited himself:

Fuller was arrested on misdemeanor disorderly conduct and threat charges, Ogan said. While Fuller was being escorted out, deputies decided he needed a mental health evaluation and he was taken to a hospital, where he remained Saturday evening.

Tuscon, we have a problem!

Someone please tell me when this slo-mo train wreck is finally over. I can't keep watching.

UPDATE: Via W.C. Varones… Mental illness and alcoholism ― the not-so-subtle clues.

Tangentially-related news: Only months after losing an election with 3% vote, progressive universal health care crusader Cheryl Allen is being held on charges she made threats against judges and other officials on her Facebook account. For some reason, progressives are proud.

(Spin... it works both ways!)

Hat tips: Doug Powers and an anonymous prog idiot

Memeorandum threads

X-posted

Democrats Hide From Voters. What Could Go Wrong?

From the "be careful what you wish for" file, here's the Democrats' secret strategy for success in the November elections: Ignore the voters and hope they go away:

If the time-honored tradition of the political meeting is not quite dead, it seems to be teetering closer to extinction. Of the 255 Democrats who make up the majority in the House, only a handful held town-hall-style forums as legislators spent last week at home in their districts.

It was no scheduling accident...

...many Democrats heeded the advice of party leaders and tried to avoid unscripted question-and-answer sessions. The recommendations were clear: hold events in controlled settings — a bank or credit union, for example — or tour local businesses or participate in community service projects.

While unfailingly sympathetic to the Democrats, the New York Times has drawn attention the Dems' incredible hopelessness. Other than running ads showing Democrats waving white flags, is there anything else the Party of Obama could do to make their desperation more obvious?

How do you run for reelection while running scared from your constituents?

This is a perfect opportunity for Tea Party groups. Hold town hall meetings for the Democrats who are hiding. If they fail to show, maybe their GOP opponents will express an interest in making an appearance.

Shame the cowards.

Demokrat Congressman Explodes on Constituent

In response to a comment on a recent post, I said that "Congress needs to feel the rhetorical pain until their attitudes have been thoroughly adjusted." At the time, I thought I might have been pushing the envelope with that statement, but apparently I was on the right track:

The scene of a Metro Atlanta town hall meeting quickly deteriorated when Democratic Congressman David Scott (GA-13) suddenly became enraged, and, in a breathtaking display of congressional machismo, began berating constituents.

Scott displayed his temper during a question-and-answer period when Brian Hill, a local resident and doctor, questioned the congressman over his support of President Barack Obama’s proposed single-payer health care system.

“Why are you voting for a health care plan that is shown not to work in Massachusetts and why are you going to institute that in a nation-wide manner?”

With a look of confusion on his face, the congressman first quietly asked an aide, “Is that the type of bill they got going on?” Then, reassured by staff that the bill Hill referenced was, in fact, the bill before Congress, Scott proceeded to respond, insomuch as the Congressman’s angry tirade may be called a response.

“I’m listening to my constituents, OK,” Scott said, with a heavy and awkward emphasis on “my.” “These are people who live in the 13th Congressional district, who vote in this district. That’s who I’'ve got to respond to, OK. Right, alright.”

Grimacing and sternly brandishing his finger at Dr. Hill, Scott’s anger intensified, as did his rhetoric.

“You chose to come and to do it on your own. Not a single one of you had the decency to call my office and set up for a meeting, OK. Do that. Do that!”

At one point Scott chastised some in the crowd for "hijacking" the meeting.

Before yielding the microphone to a staffer, Scott gave an austere warning to Dr. Hill and others present: “Don’t, don’t come and take advantage of what these individuals have done. You want a meeting with me on health care, I’ll give it to you. You come on August 24th. On August 28th.”

Local Atlanta NBC affiliate WXIA-TV reports that Hill, a verified resident of Georgia’s 13th district, has attempted, on multiple occasions and all in vain, to secure sit-downs with the incensed Congressman, however.

Here's the video (poor audio):

The doctor told the reporters he wasn't working for any outside causes and had called Mr. Scott's office repeatedly, asking to speak with the congressman.

"I did not go to a meeting to create any problems, I went to the meeting to literally ask a question that I thought was very, very important for my patients," he said.

Some astute observations from American Power:

The man in the clip, Brian Hill, a doctor, is exactly the kind of deliberative patriot the Democrats keep idealizing... And what does he get? A U.S. congressman pointing fingers and screaming at him for "hijacking" the meeting? ...David Scott epitomizes not just what's wrong with the Dems, but what's wrong with the Democratic majority in Congress.

...

Someone please bring this quote from Thomas Jefferson to the good Congressman's attention: "When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty."

More

Washington Times: Georgia Democrat yells at local doctor over health care

Rep David Scott Corrects Unruly Serf on Health Care

WSJ: Voters send a message to Washington, and get an ugly response.