Blackburn, Graham: "Angry liberal mob" ruined moment of silence for Pittsburgh victims

“Angry liberals” appears accurate as a description, as the video of the incident shows, if not quite a “mob.” At a rally yesterday in Tennessee, Senate candidate Rep. Marsha Blackburn called for a moment of silence to honor the victims of the mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue the day before — and a moment was all she got. Just as soon as the crowd buzz receded, someone yelled, “Marsha Blackburn is a white supremacist!”

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Police arrested one protester and ordered others out of the arena:

Security officers forcibly dragged a demonstrator out of a rally for Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn Sunday night, according to reports and video posted to social media. …

The heated exchanges escalated when Blackburn paused for a moment of silence to honor the victims of the mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue Saturday.

“Marsha Blackburn is a white supremacist!” a protester called out in a video posted to YouTube by a Blackburn supporter, only to be drowned out by boos and chants of “USA! USA!” from the crowd.

Blackburn described the disruption as “despicable” and pointed the finger at her opponent, former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen.

Blackburn might as well send a thank-you note to these protesters, who picked the worst possible timing for their stunt. Bredesen seemed to realize this too, scolding the protesters while pointing out that Blackburn’s supporters have been protesting his own campaign events. Perhaps that’s true, but unless they screamed ad hominem insults during a moment of silence for victims of toxic bigotry, then it’s hardly the same thing. This plays directly into Republicans’ late-cycle claim that voters have to choose “jobs, not mobs” by voting against Democrats in the midterms.

Lindsey Graham, whose own apperance got disrupted by protesters acting out in mob-like fashion, amplified those attacks afterward in an interview with Peter Doocy. “They have every right to their opinion,” Graham says, but these disruptors “have a view of the government that would make us Venezuela”:

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Sen. Lindsey Graham got a warm welcome at a rally for the Senate campaign of Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., by hundreds of Republicans excited to greet the lawmaker who helped get Brett Kavanaugh confirmed to the Supreme Court.

But just like the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings, Sunday’s program repeatedly was disrupted by protesters, including one who shouted during a moment of silence for victims of Saturday’s shooting at a synagogue in Pittsburgh, and others who needed to be physically restrained and removed by police officers.

“Judge me by my friends and the people that want to yell at me,” Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News in an interview. “The only people wanting to yell at me would turn the country into a mob.”

True enough, but it’s certainly a useful mob for Republicans eight days out from the elections. The images of these disruptions — especially during a moment of silence — will stick with voters long enough to see them through Election Day. It might even convince a few more loosely engaged voters to turn out, at least in Tennessee.

Given that opportunity, Graham blamed the mobs on Chuck Schumer and urged voters to reject Democrats to send a message on tactics:

Graham warned the audience Democrats at the national level invested $12 million in the Tennessee U.S. Senate race. He also said they wouldn’t invest that much money unless they knew exactly what they were getting in return.

“As to the Democratic nominee in this state (Bredesen), you can say anything you want, but we know exactly what you are going to do,” Graham said.

“I want Chuck Schumer to know he wasted his money. And I want every Democrat to know that If you go down the road of the mob then this is your fate.” …

“If I spoke for you then I am very pleased and proud. There’s only one way to fix this problem. Beat them (Democrats) at the ballot box.”

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They’re certainly giving Graham plenty of evidence to make that case.

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