OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Many Democrats and their allies in the mainstream media have blamed Republicans for the brutal attack on Paul Pelosi by a deranged man.
During an interview on CBS, host Margaret Brennan wasted little time trying to provoke Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Two days prior to the attack, Emmer had tweeted a brief clip of himself firing a rifle at a shooting range with the caption, “Enjoyed exercising my Second Amendment rights with @KellyCooperAZ & General @JackBergman_MI1. … 13 days to make history. Let’s #FirePelosi.”
Brennan demanded that he delete the tweet and appeared to suggest that Republicans were partially to blame for the man attacking Paul Pelosi in his home.
Below is a transcript of the exchange, via Grabien:
EMMER: “Eight out of ten Americans right now think we’re on the wrong track. That’s what they’re going to be voting on in nine days.”
BRENNAN: “I know. And I would love to talk about something other than people being worried for their lives. But, unfortunately, that’s where we are. I want to ask you about this when it comes to political violence. On your Twitter feed, you posted this video we’re going to show just a few days ago where you’re firing a gun, and it says, ‘Enjoyed exercising my Second Amendment rights. #FirePelosi.’ Why is there a gun in a political ad at all?”
EMMER: “It wasn’t an ad. I was — I was tweeting out — I was tweeting out something that I had just done.”
BRENNAN: “Hashtag — or a tweet — hashtag #FirePelosi, with a weapon.”
EMMER: “Well, now you’re — “
BRENNAN: “Wouldn’t a Pink slip be more fitting, if it’s about firing her?”
EMMER: It’s interesting, Margaret — “
BRENNAN: “Why a gun?”
EMMER: “It’s interesting, Margaret, that we’re talking about this, this morning, when a couple of years back, when a Bernie Sanders supporter shot Steve Scalise — “
BRENNAN: “Which was horrendous and horrific — “
EMMER: “ — when a Bernie Sanders supporter shot Steve Scalise — “
BRENNAN: “ — which is why we should not be putting weapons — “
EMMER: “ — I never heard you or anyone else in the media trying to blame Democrats for what happened. We need to stay focused on what we’re all doing — “
BRENNAN: “We did extensive coverage of what happened to Steve Scalise.”
EMMER: “Excuse me?”
BRENNAN: “There was extensive news coverage, sir.”
EMMER: “But nobody tried to equate Democrats’ rhetoric, people that say — “
BRENNAN: “I’m not talking about your rhetoric. I’m talking about what you posted.”
EMMER: “It’s the same.”
BRENNAN: “You’re shooting a gun. Our viewers just saw it.”
EMMER: “Yeah, right.”
BRENNAN: “Hashtag #FirePelosi.”
EMMER: “Exercising our Second Amendment rights, having fun shooting a gun.”
BRENNAN: “That’s not a debate about the Second Amendment.”
EMMER: “Yeah.”
BRENNAN: “That’s not a debate about the Second Amendment.”
EMMER: “Yes, it is.”
BRENNAN: “Hashtag #FirePelosi.”
EMMER: Yes, it is. I — I’m running the campaign operation.”
BRENNAN: “Do you not understand that that is suggestive to people who are in a bad state, and, in this current environment, how risky it is? As you’re talking about the importance of lowering the rhetoric — “
EMMER: “I disagree with you.”
BRENNAN: “ — why do you leave that up?”
EMMER: “Again, I never saw anyone after Steve Scalise was shot by a Bernie Sanders supporter — “
BRENNAN: “I’m talking about right now, what just is happening now.”
EMMER: “ — trying to equate — equate Democrat rhetoric with those actions. Please don’t do that.”
BRENNAN: “Okay. Looking at your candidates, Republican candidates have spent more than $116 million on ads that mentioned Speaker Pelosi by name in this cycle. If this is about the issues, why not just make it about the issues? Why not depersonalize it?”
EMMER: “It is absolutely about the issues. It’s about the fact that we have double-digit inflation, exploding — exploding cost of living. We’ve got a crime wave across this country that is a direct result — that is the direct result — “
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