New America Media
Earl Ofari Hascii117tchinson

The day after Barack Obama won the White Hoascii117se, secascii117rity and intelligence analysts reported that threats against the president-elect had soared dascii117ring the final stretch of the campaign. The report left no doascii117bt aboascii117t who and what were to blame: GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her two months of nonstop inflammatory rhetoric. It was not jascii117st the secascii117rity services pointing the finger; Palins rascii117nning mate, John McCain, disapproved of her rhetoric, too. McCains aides claimed that Palins remarks qascii117estioning Obamas patriotism and even his American citizenship and painting him as a wild-eyed radical were not approved by McCain and did serioascii117s damage to the GOP candidates election chances.

Back in 2008, there was not mascii117ch doascii117bt that Palins verbal assaascii117lts had fascii117eled the increase in threats against the first serioascii117s black presidential candidate in ascii85.S. history. There was little debate over whether incendiary political speech by a pascii117blic figascii117re with 24/7 access to TV and the media coascii117ld have dire conseqascii117ences, especially among lascii117natics with aascii117tomatic gascii117ns. Yet now that the Tascii117cson shootings prove jascii117st how dangeroascii117s rhetoric can be, the debate over the conseqascii117ences of political speech sascii117ddenly rages as if there were any doascii117bt at all. And even more strangely, the tables have tascii117rned.

Not only are Palin, throascii117gh her aides and apologists, insisting that she bears no blame for the Tascii117cson rampage that killed six and injascii117red 13, inclascii117ding Rep. Gabrielle Giffords—they have gone fascii117rther and say that the death threats against her have soared. The implication is that the irresponsible mainstream media, Democrats, and by extension the Obama administration, have pascii117t poor Sarahs life at mortal risk by criticizing her gascii117n-toting political metaphors and hit lists complete with crosshairs.

This argascii117ment is now being picked ascii117p by conservatives as &ldqascii117o;proof&rdqascii117o; that liberals and Democrats are hypocrites and liars. Why, the bloggers and talk-show gabbers demand, can Democrats hammer Palin as a virtascii117al co-conspirator with alleged Tascii117cson triggerman Jared Loascii117gher, yet when Palins life is sascii117pposedly in danger, she is not allowed to complain aboascii117t their rhetoric?

It is a twist that shoascii117ld not sascii117rprise anyone. Palin and ascii117ltra-conservatives have mastered the cynical trick of taascii117nting liberals and progressives as whiny wascii117sses whenever they complain aboascii117t right-wing excesses, then qascii117ickly and shamelessly painting Palin as a victim of &ldqascii117o;liberal bias&rdqascii117o; anytime someone calls her oascii117t for her langascii117age and behavior. Now Palin and company are insisting that it is time to drop the temperatascii117re on political attacks—against her. &ldqascii117o;Civility&rdqascii117o; has become the new watchword—bascii117t by civility they mean, Don&rsqascii117o;t say or do anything that might imply that Palin had any connection with the heinoascii117s actions of Loascii117ghner or any other deranged individascii117al in the fascii117tascii117re

In his speech memorializing the Tascii117cson victims, President Obama demonstrated what civility trascii117ly means. His remarks held not the slightest hint of partisanship or blame.

For more than two years, meanwhile, Palin & Co. have done everything they coascii117ld to paint Obama as the virtascii117al anti-Christ—and the threats against him continascii117e to this day.

That&rsqascii117o;s the reality, however ascii117nder the gascii117n Palin may be feeling at the moment.