On a day that political leaders in Washington and Arizona devoted to honoring Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and other victims of Saturday’s mass shooting in Tucson, Sarah Palin proved once again that her bully pulpit is second to none in commanding the attention and passions of the political world.
As Democratic and Republican lawmakers filed into the well of the House to offer prayers for the severely wounded Giffords and the six people who were killed, Palin’s eight-minute Facebook video — in which she accuses her opponents of “blood libel” — dominated the national political conversation.
The video, released shortly after 6 a.m., was the top topic on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Palin’s name had appeared 16 times on the front page of The Washington Post’s website by midafternoon, and “blood libel” was the No. 1 “hot” search on Google.
Jewish Democrats jumped on her for using that highly charged term, which refers to the lie, long used as an excuse for persecution, that Jews make matzo — an unleavened bread — using the blood of Christian children.
Nevada Rep. Shelley Berkley, one of the House’s most prominent Jewish Democrats, described herself as “horrified and mystified” at Palin’s choice of words. “I’m horrified that she would use that phrase and mystified as to why.”
But for Palin backers, it was a long-overdue defense of a maligned conservative — and one they hoped would contrast well with President Barack Obama’s speech at a Tucson memorial service Wednesday night.
“Mr. President, here’s the bar that you have to clear. It’s a high one,” Moe Lane wrote on conservative website RedState.com. “What you really need to do is take note of the fact that she’s saying the things that the president should be saying right now about the need to come together, the glory of this country — and, yes, that the Democratic Party is acting like a bunch of [expletive deleted] right now and that they need to stop.”
Some Democratic officials and liberal opinion-makers have suggested that a political map that Palin’s political action committee used during the 2010 midterm elections contributed to a violent environment in Arizona because it included cross hairs to mark Democratic incumbents who had been targeted for defeat, including Giffords. The Arizona Democrat, who remains in critical condition, was shot in the head.
For days, Palin had been criticized for her reticence — and now she is being taken to task for offering such a staunch self-defense.
Beyond the risk of offending Jewish folks, some Democrats and Republicans said her timing struck them as poor: Why, they wondered, would she draw attention to herself on a day when other politicians took a break to mourn — especially when most Americans already said they believe harsh rhetoric had nothing to do with the mass murders in Tucson.
“What a dumb s---,” said one Republican House lawmaker who asked for anonymity in discussing Palin’s timing frankly. “It’s all about her, all the time, isn’t it?”
Palin’s allies believe she has been wronged, and even those who questioned her timing said that she has a right to defend herself against the implication that she somehow helped inspire mass murder.
The former Alaska governor warned in the video that such accusations could have a chilling effect on a core tenet of American democracy: free speech.
“If you don’t like a person’s vision for the country, you’re free to debate that vision. If you don’t like their ideas, you’re free to propose better ideas,” Palin said. “But especially within hours of a tragedy unfolding, journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn. That is reprehensible.”
Indiana Rep. Mike Pence, a potential 2012 Republican presidential primary adversary, defended Palin’s posting.
“Sarah Palin has every right to defend herself and to defend her reputation,” said Pence, who may run for governor rather than president. “The efforts to lay blame at the feet of Sarah Palin or anyone else are absurd.”
His remarks echoed those he made on the floor after paying tribute to Giffords.
“We should always refrain from engaging in personal verbal attacks against those with whom we differ on important questions of the day. But let me say, we must also resist, in these moments of heartache, the temptation to assign blame to those with whom we differ for the acts of others,” he said. “No expressed opinion, on the left or the right, was to blame for Saturday’s attack, and we must resist efforts to suggest otherwise because to do so has the potential to inhibit and erode our freedom.”
Asked about the “blood libel” remark, Brad Dayspring, a spokesman for Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia — the highest-ranking Jewish Republican in Congress — said his boss is focused on the victims of the tragedy.
“Eric hopes that members, journalists and all Americans keep their hearts, prayers and hopes with Congresswoman Giffords, the victims of this horrific tragedy and their families, who are no doubt grieving today and in need of our collective support,” Dayspring said.
In her first comments on the tragedy in Tucson — issued Saturday — Palin had simply offered her prayers.
“My sincere condolences are offered to the family of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the other victims of today’s tragic shooting in Arizona,” she said in a statement. “On behalf of Todd and my family, we all pray for the victims and their families and for peace and justice.”
© 2011 Capitol News
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