A Republican congressional candidate vying for Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s seat seems to think the route to victory requires triggering language and death suggestions.
Let’s say by some grand forfeiture of common sense anyone would even consider Danielle Stella a viable candidate, with a felony shoplifting charge for allegedly taking 279 items worth more than $2,300 from a Target. She stooped to an even lower low Tuesday to suggest that her opponent in Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District be hanged. Her vile message, which Stella sent in two tweets, got her accounts shut down on Twitter, according to The Washington Post.
In the messages, she referenced an unfounded rumor that Qatari officials had recruited Omar, the first Somali American elected to Congress and the first to wear a hijab, the Post reported. “If it is proven @IlhanMN passed sensitive info to Iran, she should be tried for #treason and hanged,” Stella tweeted. She followed with a tweet sharing a blog post link about her thoughtless statement and a photo of a stick-figure being hanged.
In an even classier move, Stella went on to defend the tweets Friday on Facebook.
”There are MANY hypocrites rage posting here. Breathe, think this through, logically,” Stella said in the post. “To clarify, I said, ‘If it is proven ____ passed sensitive info to Iran, she should be tried for #treason and hanged.’” Because this is logical to someone actually entrusted with teaching students, the special education teacher went on to explain the statement. “Treason is the only thing mentioned in the constitution for the death penalty, punishable by hanging or firing squad. I believe all involved should be thoroughly investigated,” Stella said. “I did not threaten anyone. If you are calling it a threat- you believe that individual is guilty, and therefore it is not a threat, it's treason. You and the fake news #MSM are lying by calling it Iynch ing or terroristic threats.”
It’s like there is an outline these Donald Trump aficionados refer back to in crafting these statements: First, spew dog-whistle racism. Then, blame the media. Next, falsely accuse any dissenters. Deny, deny, deny, and cry victim.
Stella didn’t vary from the script in the least bit.
“I believe all traitors to our Country need to be tried for their many crimes,” she said. “I've been outspoken about HRC crime family, BH0, S0R0S and others as well. You are making this into something it's not.” “You are making it about race, about religion, about anything but the truth,” the educator added. “While doing so, you are sending heinous comments, actual death threats, threats of bodily harm, threats to my friends, supporters, threats to post private photos, insulting/attacking my religion, intelligence, race, gender, mental health, physical health, appearance, labeling me with many disorders and diagnoses, and using very non-PC language to do so.”
Insert more tears.
“What you're doing is reprehensible and speaks to your flawed souls and damaged psyches,” Stella said. “The only death threats I'm seeing is from the angry liberal mob where facts don't matter, only emotion, and you're somehow thinking you're righteous by threatening my life, my supporters' lives, my loved ones lives? No, this is wrong. You are hypocrites. The angry liberal mob does this frequently to our President Donald J. Trump and his family, and never are held accountable for your hatred, your violence, your many threats, or heinous posts like Kathy Griffin.”
Stella ended her rant with “#UnitedWeStand #ForGodAndCountry #FightForUS.”
Meanwhile, the woman actually targeted by the president, his racist supporters chanting “Send her back,” and, as of late, by a special education teacher in her own state, kept her remarks brief and on-message Friday on Twitter. “This is the natural result of a political environment where anti-Muslim dogwhistles and dehumanization are normalized by an entire political party and its media outlets,” Omar said. “Violent rhetoric inevitably leads to violent threats, and ultimately, violent acts.”