Tea Party Activist Calls for the Hanging of Senator Patty Murray?!

While excitement fueled by hate and anger tend to run high at rallies hosted by tea-partiers, we were shocked when we heard about this comment from a participant in a tea party rally in Washington state last week, attended by hundreds of activists, calling for the hanging of Senator Patty Murray. The tea-party spokesperson compared Senator Murray to the character of Jake from “Lonesome Dove” and said: “What happened to Jake when he ran with the wrong crowd? He got hung (sic). And that’s what I want to do with Patty Murray.”

We know a lot of voters are angry right now, but statements like that go too far. We’re all for robust debate, but saying you’d like to murder a U.S. Senator because you’re frustrated about what’s going on in Washington is way out of line. What’s more disconcerting is that the rally organizers, the Lewis and Clark Tea Party Patriots, had little to say about how the lack of appropriateness of the comment. And the really disturbing part? It’s only February, and the tea partiers are just starting to get warmed up for the November elections.

Sen. Murray is facing re-election in November -- click here to make a contribution to Senator Murray’s campaign so that she has the resources to fight back against the far right.