I did not anticipate the level of vitriol I received after I wrote last week about the targeted murder of Brian Thompson, the CEO of health insurance giant UnitedHealthcare.
I’ve been in the news business a long time. Trust me when I say I’m used to getting a lot of hate from my readers.
Yet, I did not anticipate the level of vitriol I received after I wrote last week about the targeted murder of Brian Thompson, the CEO of insurance giant UnitedHealthcare.
In that column, I questioned where our humanity was given the outpouring of glee that took place in response to Thompson’s fatal shooting on the streets of New York City.
Many people channeled their frustrations with the health care system into justifying the violent death of an innocent father and husband. And they declared the shooter a “hero” before they knew anything about him (the alleged killer is anything but).
It made me feel sick.
In some of the responses, readers tried to couch their views by saying they don’t usually condone violence, BUT they could understand what might lead to it in this case – as if there’s ever justification for cold-blooded murder.
What’s worse is that these inhumane takes have been echoed in the supposed highest echelons of our country.
Take Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren. She said the following, which included a distasteful “but”: “Violence is never the answer, but people can only be pushed so far. This is a warning that if you push people hard enough, they lose faith in the ability of their government to make change, lose faith in the ability of the people who are providing the health care to make change, and start to take matters into their own hands in ways that will ultimately be a threat to everyone.”
That's seriously a U.S. senator's take.
Violent attacks are becoming more common. There's no excuse.
Several other recent incidents highlight how violence in response to political differences is seeping into our social fabric.
This week, South Carolina GOP Rep. Nancy Mace says she was assaulted by a man visiting the Capitol because of her stance on transgender rights. The man allegedly shook her hand and arm in an aggressive manner and wouldn’t let her go.
Mace, who posted a photo of her arm in a sling after the incident, has recently been in the spotlight for her position on women’s rights and protecting women’s spaces. She pushed for a Capitol policy that bans transgender women from using women’s bathrooms.
Because of that, Mace has reportedly received death threats, among other disturbing responses.
Disagree with Mace all you want, but she doesn’t deserve to live her life in fear because of her advocacy for women (or anything else).
This week, a bomb threat at the home of another member of Congress − Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene − led to the death of an innocent woman. A police officer headed to Greene’s home was in a car accident, resulting in the death of the driver in another vehicle.
“These violent political threats have fatal consequences. It’s an undue strain on our law enforcement who must treat them seriously. The officer was responding to protect my life,” Greene wrote on X. “And now, a woman has lost her life because of this despicable act.”
Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store.
Democratic lawmakers and some of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees also have reported similar swatting threats in recent weeks.
It shouldn't be hard to condemn these attacks and threats
Greene has said a lot of crazy things during her time in office and has clearly made a lot of enemies.
Yet, no one should be threatened because of political viewpoints or what job one happens to have. In Thompson’s case, he was gunned down apparently because he worked in the “wrong” industry.
While Sen. Warren couldn’t bring herself to condemn Thompson’s murder without caveats, some of her colleagues are doing a much better job in calling out violence.
For instance, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, a Democrat (and someone I find myself agreeing with often these days), said this on X about Mace’s assault: “I condemn this attack – one that’s part of an emerging national conversation: Condoning, celebrating, or rationalizing the attack or execution of somebody with differing views. Apparently it’s an open-season on anyone if you disagree with them.
It’s unacceptable.”
That's not so hard to say.