The Non-Neutral Bureaucracy

For John, BLUF:  The sad thing is that I was not surprised by the FBI determined the Congressman Steve Scalise shooting was "Suicide by Cop".  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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An outrage from the FBI

From The Washington Examiner, by Columnist Byron York, 23 April 2021, 08:44 AM.

Here is the lede plus three:

AN OUTRAGE FROM THE FBI.  On June 14, 2017, a team of Republican lawmakers went to an athletic field in Alexandria, Virginia to practice for the annual Congressional Baseball Game for Charity.  As they worked out, a man armed with a semi-automatic rifle and pistol approached and opened fire.  Representative Steve Scalise, the House Republican whip, was gravely wounded.  A lobbyist was also seriously hurt, and a congressional aide and Capitol Police officer were wounded, as well.

The shooter, James Hodgkinson of Belleville, Illinois, was an active Bernie Sanders supporter who hated Republicans and particularly hated then-President Donald Trump.  "Trump is a Traitor.  Trump Has Destroyed Our Democracy.  It's Time to Destroy Trump & Co.," Hodgkinson posted on his Facebook page.  He thought of himself as part of the Resistance.  He joined Facebook groups like "Terminate The Republican Party" and "Join The Resistance Worldwide!!"

Hodgkinson came to the Washington area in 2017, living out of a van parked in Alexandria.  He brought his guns and developed a plan to attack Republicans.  He went to the baseball field with a list of several GOP members of Congress in his pocket, along with physical descriptions of some of them.  Before the attack, he asked Republican Representative Jeff Duncan, who was leaving practice early, whether the players on the field were Republicans or Democrats.  Duncan said it was the Republican team.  A short time later, Hodgkinson opened fire.  After a rampage of nearly ten minutes, he was killed by Capitol Police and Alexandria Police.

The attack was a clear act of violent, politically-motivated domestic terrorism.  There was simply no doubt about that.  And yet last week, Republican Representative Brad Wenstrup, who had been at the practice, revealed that the FBI concluded Hodgkinson was simply trying to commit "suicide by cop."

Interestingly, we were in Belleville, Illinois, at the time.  Our youngest, a lawyer in the Department of Justice, called us and gave us a heads up, in case there were like-minded individuals in Mr Hodgkinson's home town.

My conclusion is that while the FBI still carries guns, and can arrest you (and spy on you in contravention of the Bill of Rights), they are not a serious organization.  The likes of FBI Personnel such as Former Director James Comey and Agent Peter Strzok make that obvious.

The current witch hunt for ["right wing"] extremists, while marking the attack on the GOP Congression Baseball Team as "Suicide by Cop" is deplorable.

Now I have to ask myself if I violated my own admonition to show respect while critizing; "Do so respectfully".

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff