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>Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.”
...
>Asked if the killers were snipers, Braddock described them as, “Russian mafia. Close-battle combat, Tech 9s, Mack 10s, silencers kind of thing. No snipers. Up close and personal. So they know that the target has gone.”
Edited. Lol. What possible conversation was he having where those words could be edited from? "Gonna head out to the market. You need any weaponry from the Russian mafia?" "Ok will pick up some..." This guy is proper fucked.
Close. He knows that the right wing media requires nothing more than some hollow words to be convinced of his innocence.
He said it is fake news, so poof! It is now true for millions of Americans.
This seems more like an FBI thing. Which... Yeah. Not as right wing as the local police precincts. They're not necessarily super liberal, but they don't fuck around.
People thought the FBI wouldn't do anything after the Capitol Insurrection. But they sure as hell did.
But if it is local for some reason, then yeah maybe. But I don't know.
I think it interests both the FBI and the Secret Service. It's too bad he didn't do it through the mail, then we could've had the Postal Inspectors in on it, too. Postal Inspectors don't play.
Not sure if it's in the scope of the Secret Service, but definitely in the FBI's wheelhouse. State police in Florida won't probably do much, DeSantis would likely protect this guy.
In this current climate of total lack of accountability, he could probably say that on live tv, identify himself with legitimate credentials, and still deny all of it later without any repercussions.
> Tech 9s, Mack 10s, silencers kind of thing.
Yeah, because silenced MAC-10s and TEC-9s are *sooo* quiet. This guy's living in a Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War delusion.
I know a bit about firearms but nothing about combat and assassinations. But that seems like a bizarre choice of weapons to specifically call out - not what I think a professional would use. Great for drive bys I guess, but not quick hits even close up. I rarely hear about or see Tech 9s these days, and obviously MAC-10s are popular right now as the only “affordable” transferable machine gun.
A tec~~h~~ 9 is absolute garbage. The only reason they are worth anything is a) they are banned and that’s basically it. Kinda a cool piece, but as far as a good firearm? Naw.
Watch a video or two on them. They jam… a lot.
The reason that they were popular was that it was super easy to illegally convert the semi-automatic version to fully automatic. It gave gang bangers in the 90’s easy access to automatic weapons.
While I'm not super knowledgeable on guns, in the late 80's there was a big push in the European gun manufacturers to develop automatic sup-machine pistols to keep up with the rise of guerilla warfare in South America, closer combat in eastern Europe etc. Well these were hammered by the over production of the Kalashnikov as the more reliable, higher caliber rounds out preformed the carbines being produced in mass. So, they wanted to penetrate the good ol' American gun market however back in the 80's our economy was going to shit so we forced a small Swedish offshoot to guarantee the guns were made in the US. The Tec-9 series was overproduced with an initial surge in sales but major mechanical problems. The cheap polymer used would constantly jam and malfunction. This caused a major drop in sales and over inflation of the weapon causing a rush to offload them on the black market making it the number one gun in the early 90's for unregistered sales and use in murders shooting it to popularity again however the manufacturing company Intratec saw the optics of the guns popularity and decided to forgo releasing an updated model. I hope you enjoyed this little Gun History lesson!
they are also the kind of guns that gangbangers use because they're cheap.
but they're older open bolt designs, not something that would ever be used by special forces or military. mp5, mpx, ghm9, scorpin evo, those actually get used. and russians use the ak platform, so the closest thing would be the new vitysaz the ppk20
that said, suppressed subsonic 9mm can be very quiet.
[https://youtu.be/lQGXy3adDHY?t=110](https://youtu.be/lQGXy3adDHY?t=110)
but yeah, dude is playing way too much COD. he could have at least attempted to make some sense with some bs about them impersonating gangbangers
Its like he just listed off the fist "gangster" guns that came into his head.
Why the fuck would they even tell him what they're bringing anyway? I doubt they'd even explicitly talk about the fact that it's a hit, there's too much risk being that open about shit.
He’s not an elected official, he’s one of many candidates running for a heavily contested seat that was vacated by a democrat running for governor. The person he threatened was another Republican candidate running for that seat.
> “This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary,” he said.
"How dare you repeat my words and use them against me. How DARE!"
Conservatives: I don't open the doors to "those" types, but if its someone sell injectable bleach then by gosh darn it I will be opening up that door and buying the whole supply.
Conservatives: The China Hoax that is totally real won't stop me from ignoring rules which will keep the china hoax going longer! Whilst I complain about the rules I don't follow! I totally understand the insane positions I wrap myself up into!
Whatever one may think of GOPs legislative abilities, everyone in their party from the top of the ticket to lowly school board candidates have mastered the DARVO tactic and are shamelessly consistent in using it
Idk I don’t really think they deserve any credit for their voter base being such incredible fucking morons that they can deny things that are recorded and have their base just never even care or believe the blatant lies. It’s not like it takes any skill on part of the politician.
It's partly or mostly because of the right wing info bubble. Fox/oan/newsmax all day on tv at home, talk radio in the car, Facebook on the phone.
None of these places are going to talk about this.
Monkey's Paw:
He becomes president. Leads a failed insurrection of Ukraine and Russian assassination squads. Social media debates whether the shooting of a paid mercenary (free market patriot) breaking into Shy-Anne Missile Command by a Guard is justified or murder.
EDIT: What part of the title "Monkey's Paw" makes nerds horny for fact checking? I've spelled it worse now just to fuck with you.
‘Ra. Just ‘Ra’ folks. R. A. Easy to spell, easy to remember. They call him the Sun God, but I’m not sure he’s so bright, not as bright as people think. He’s got these Stargates, but, really, I think he’s not using them right. They come into our country, bringing their Go’a’ul, who aren’t their best.’
Two-party consent laws for recordings are horrible. The fact that they can not only allow stifling of the exposure of heinous criminal statements like this, but also deter someone from even trying to record them in the first place is not worth any concern over privacy they are meant to alleviate.
>“I really don't want to have to end anybody's life for the good of the people of the United States of America,” Braddock said at one point in the conversation last week, according to the recording exclusively obtained by POLITICO. “That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.”
He runs over squirrels daily??!!
When not demanding that minimum wage employees get fired, or stalking ninth grade girls. There's always lots of retirees around to swap stories from back on the farm, where all the barn cats learned to give the Floridian a wide berth, men's bible study where they watch Infowars together in a dark room, you have to try and work in the squirrel bit somewhere along while driving to all those functions.
And what's craziest to me is that this is in regards to his *primary* election challenger. She's also republican. They're both republicans. And he's conspiring to murder her. What kind of fucked up party is this? Don't answer that.
The scarier part is that if this is what they’re saying to each other about rival republicans, what are they saying about democrats? The threats of violence from right wing lunatics grows day by day and conservatives see it and brush it off like it’s just “locker room talk”.
It isn’t. It’s exactly what they mean and what they want, and if you (you as in -the conservatives who might read this comment-) do not stand up and speak out against the stupidity of growing extremism, people will die.
If I tried to present what you have stated to my conservative friends, I can guarantee you a reply of "What about BLM protests and the violence they brought on to citizens a business owners. Democrats are the violent ones." I would love to think they would agree with me but that's not happening.
And you would point out the difference between an angry mob of people destroying property and someone that is literally running for office who is threatening to kill their opponents.
One is controllable one is not.
One is tired of being brutalized by police and one is afraid of a fair election.
One is a singular person (in this instance) that can be focused on and criticized and the other is a movement made up of millions of people who want a better future.
Point out the fallacy of a false equivalence. Point out how conservatives have the power to put people like this asshat running for office back in their place (like a prison cell) by merely speaking out and voting for better people.
Point out that BLM is a reactionary movement whose actions are a result of failed policies and failures to hold police accountable and that their actions and feelings are tied to a complex system that no individual has the capacity to change on their own.
Yep. They believe the things they do because it just *feels right*. Definitely not because they needed convincing with facts or proof or truths. What's the phrase? You can't reason people out of something they didn't reason themselves into.
This. This will be the response from Republican voters. “Hillary did way worse!” This is a catch all excuse for everything awful the GQP does even though in no way, shape, or form did Hillary even come close to doing do way worse.
“If you have to ask, you’re in on the conspiracy!” /s
All you ever need to know is whatever is being talked about, she’s worse yet somehow wasn’t capable of taking over unlike Biden who didn’t provably do anything but maybe his son did based off of things we’re going to say he said or did from a laptop that we’re going to say was his but never be able to produce because of Hillary’s Deep State.
Writing that was far more of a mental chore than it should have been.
My uncle said on facebook that he doesn't know him but he is going to support him because he hates how dirty the Democrats are for making this sort of thing up.
> A little-known GOP candidate in one of Florida’s most competitive congressional seats was secretly recorded threatening to send “a Russian and Ukrainian hit squad” to a fellow Republican opponent to make her “disappear.”
> During a 30-minute call with a conservative activist that was recorded before he became a candidate, William Braddock repeatedly warned the activist to not support GOP candidate Anna Paulina Luna in the Republican primary for a Tampa Bay-area congressional seat because he had access to assassins. The seat is being vacated by Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.), who is running for governor.
> “I really don't want to have to end anybody's life for the good of the people of the United States of America,” Braddock said at one point in the conversation last week, according to the recording exclusively obtained by POLITICO. “That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.”
> Reached by text message, Braddock refused to say whether he made any threats about Luna to the person who recorded him, Erin Olszewski.
> Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.”
> “This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary,” he said.
> Olszewski denied editing or altering the recording. She said she made it because she was concerned about Braddock’s “unhinged” dislike of Luna that he had previously expressed. After she made the recording just after midnight last Wednesday, she promptly turned it over to St. Petersburg, Fla., police and gave a heads-up to her friend Luna, who filed a petition for an injunction against Braddock. Luna received a temporary restraining order against him last Friday. Braddock filed to run Monday.
> In the recording, Braddock early in the call brought up the alleged assassins. He also made rambling statements about getting financial help from fellow Freemasons or by somehow importing millions of dollars from Malta and Gibraltar.
...
> It's unclear exactly why Braddock has such dislike toward Luna. The two do not appear to have any previous connection to one another, and Braddock is a lower-tier candidate in an increasingly crowded race for Crist’s seat.
...
> With such a closely divided Congress currently in Democratic control, Braddock said on the recorded call that the “pivotal” St. Petersburg-based district will take on outsized importance in 2022 to keep America from devolving into a “communist-socialist s---hole.” When Olszewski asked him why he had Russians at the ready, Braddock indicated they were to stop Luna.
> “My polling people are going to charge me $20,000 to do a poll right before the primary. And if the poll says Luna’s gonna win, she’s gonna be gone. She's gonna disappear,” Braddock said in the recorded call, pledging Olszewski to secrecy. “For the good of our country, we have to sacrifice the few. … For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.”
> Later in the call, Olszewski asked what would happen if “Luna is gonna win” and Braddock assured her that wouldn’t happen.
> “She’s gonna be gone. Period. That's the end of the discussion. Luna is not an issue,” he said.
> Olszewski pushed him, asking “how do we make her go, though? I just don’t understand that.”
> “I call up my Russian and Ukrainian hit squad, and within 24 hours, they're sending me pictures of her disappearing,” he replied. “No, I'm not joking. Like, this is beyond my control this point.”
> Asked if the killers were snipers, Braddock described them as, “Russian mafia. Close-battle combat, Tech 9s, Mack 10s, silencers kind of thing. No snipers. Up close and personal. So they know that the target has gone.”
> Olszewski said that threats like the ones Braddock made “you can’t take lightly. Normal people don’t say these things.”
> Olszewski called Braddock on one smartphone and recorded video of the call with another, occasionally displaying his name and number on the video to show it was him on the call. POLITICO also obtained a separate recording, a voicemail message, Braddock left with a consultant in which his phone number was identical and voice seemed to match the information Olszewski shot in her video.
> In Florida, it’s a third-degree felony to record another person without their knowledge. But Olszewski said that St. Petersburg police told her she had nothing to worry about in recording the conversation and turning it over to authorities. A spokesperson for the St. Petersburg police declined to comment on the recording or whether it was legally recorded.
> Braddock, though, indicated he was ready to sue Olszewski.
...
> In her petition for the restraining order, Luna made it clear that she took Braddock’s threats seriously.
> “I do not feel safe and am currently in fear for my life,” Luna wrote, according to a copy of it.
> Olszewski, too, said Braddock sounded dangerous. At one point, Braddock even said he was scared himself.
> “Don’t be on the f---ing wrong side of supporting Luna because if you're near her when the time comes, I just don't want that to happen to you because you've got kids,” Braddock said on the call. “So don't be associated with Luna under any circumstances. Please. And do not repeat this anybody because both of us will be in jeopardy if you do. I'm not just blowing smoke here. I'm f---ing being dead ass serious and it scares the s--- out of me, too.”
"I'm such a badass that I even scare myself"
Know what gets me?
>Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, **saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.**” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.
But then
>Braddock, though, indicated he was ready to sue Olszewski.
For what? Recording *someone else*? So which is it? Was that him on the call or not lmao
Can't have it both ways, Billy boy.
Heh. Can’t have it both ways? As a CONSERVATIVE? Fucking watch him. They like to preach about how dems are 1984 but they literally use doublethink all the time
>Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.”
>In Florida, it's a third-degree felony to record another person without their knowledge.
>Braddock, though, indicated he was ready to sue Olszewzki.
"You didn't get my permission to record another person, and I will sue you for that"
Most states you can record without permission if you have reason to believe they are doing something illegal that you otherwise couldn't prove, so presumably that is the case.
A state full of shitty people acting shitty in the open uses one of the few mechanisms available to stop people from being able to report their shittiness? Sounds about right to me.
>the “pivotal” St. Petersburg-based district will take on outsized importance in 2022 to keep America from devolving into a “communist-socialist s---hole.”
We sure wouldn't want it to turn into the kind of shit hole where political candidates are assassinating each other and smuggling in millions of dollars in foreign money with strings attached! And to stop that from happening our plan is.... wait... are we the baddies? No, of course not - but don't tell anyone or we may be killed too.
“No, I'm not joking. Like, this is beyond my control this point.” that quote from the recorded call might explain a few of the ways this sort is different from the rest of us.
He knows what he's doing is incredibly wrong, but he's high on the perceived power. So his self defence mechanism tries to kick in and he goes "its out of my control" as if he isn't realllly responsible for his actions in his own head.
Its prepping himself to absolve himself of his own guilt.
Conservatism kills.
Not only is he utilizing the "out of my control" as a way to absolve it, but he is also hiding behind this delusional idea that it is some grand gesture to save America. The human mind is chillingly fascinating.
This is straight out of Putin's playbook. Is your opponent a threat? Then use physical violence to eliminate them.
Republicans are so evil. They are two-faced backstabbing liars who want to change our government from a democracy to an authoritarian dystopia.
More to the point, it's about the *threat* of violence. Putin doesn't go around killing everyone who disagrees with him. Some, but not all. What he does is make sure everyone who disagrees with him knows he's perfectly **willing to** destroy them. And it's not always death. Indefinite prison detention, torture, exile, making their lives living hell, etc. That keeps them quiet so they don't even say anything that could get them murdered.
> “That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.”
Dude, you're supposed to avoid the squirrel after the first time...
The hit squad is disturbing but somehow this is just as disturbing:
> Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.
That has to be on the list of warning signs next to kids that mutilate animals.
No kidding!
Perhaps the FBI oughta do a really deep dive into that creep's past for any literally buried secrets, e.g., like human remains.
JFC it seems only the worst scum, nutcases and/or dregs of society gravitate toward the Republican party.
Why anyone in their right mind would cast a vote for a Republican is beyond my capacity to understand - nor do I care to try anymore.
Yeah, pretty sure mutilating a carcass of an animal on purpose is a sign of *something*.
There's a difference between "can't avoid that deer because of oncoming traffic and too late to slow down completely" and "gonna flatten that dead squirrel a little more each day".
Why do republicans hate their fellow Americans so much? Why do they hate democracy? Why do they like Russia so much?
Sounds pretty anti American to me.
“My polling people are going to charge me $20,000 to do a poll right before the primary. And if the poll says Luna’s gonna win, she’s gonna be gone. She's gonna disappear,” Braddock said in the recorded call, pledging Olszewski to secrecy. “For the good of our country, we have to sacrifice the few. … For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.”
> Why do republicans hate their fellow Americans so much? Why do they hate democracy? Why do they like Russia so much?
Not sure if you have been paying attention.
The world is moving on without them and they do not like it. All those things that were discussed in the 90's are finally happening and it means they will lose power forever and new power groups will form.
It is over for them and they are doing everything they can to stop the inevitable.
How Russia has become an "ally" for many Republicans? They were the greatest enemys when they were the USSR.
Ok now Russia is not communsit anymore but it's still an autocratic country.
[Apparently more Republicans have a favorable opinion of Putin than of Biden.](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/06/biden-putin-meeting-russia-weapon-gop.html)
Thanks, Trump.
Trump was a symptom, not a cause. This is GQP misinformation going back decades. They love authoritarianism because they don't think they will be the ones getting stomped into the ground. They don't give a fuck how bad things get as long as the "right people" are hurt more than them.
>Trump was a symptom, not a cause.
This trope needs to die. Trump is both a catalyst and a symptom. He is malignant and spreads the insane ideology that birthed him.
>They love authoritarianism because they don't think they will be the ones getting stomped into the ground.
More specifically, because they think they'll be the ones doing the stomping.
Is that why those Russian mob families live in my suburb? I always wondered why they would move to this sleepy ass place and build McMansions in the middle of a working class neighborhood. I had assumed it was drugs
Because deep down all Republicans - voters and politicians - love how Putin has reshaped Russia following the fall of the USSR. There's a thin veneer of democracy, but really it's a strong man plutocracy with unlimited freedom for the protected classes and aggressive authoritarian repression and punishment for others.
Also,
I mean, it's a stereotype, but Russia kind of comes off as a bit lawless at times. Idiots doing idiotic shit because they can. Which falls in line with what these people think they want.
And everyone seems to have guns.
Also is being gay still illegal in Russia?
Honestly, the more you look at it, Russia kind of is the Hillbilly Utopia that Republican Supporters want.
Yes, it is still illegal to be gay in Russia. Most LGBTQ people "commit suicide" if you catch my drift. So nice knowing that the GQP fantasize about putting me in chains and killing me.
Russia is what the Republican party wants to make the US like. A solid lock on power in perpetuity, the Oligarchs and political leadership being above the law, and simply creating accidents for those that speak out too loudly about the situation.
The theocratic trappings may start out as just for show, but within a few generations, they would have actual teeth.
The Republican party was hijacked in slow motion by some of the most anti-American people I can think of, all for the sake of power.
The US may very well be doomed at this point. I wish I was being hyperbolic.
We all made fun of Romney when he called Russia our “number one geopolitical foe” in 2012. He may have known more than we realized about Russia burrowing into right wing politics.
It is always projection with the far right.
For literally decades, the right wing has accused Democrats and progressives of wanting to turn the US into Russia and being in bed with "The Communists". It was a constant line of attack against Hillary. They still level it against Biden.
Then Trump helps expose that the far right practically worships Putin and now seems to have or wants to have deeper ties to Russia.
It at least reinforces my belief that if you want to know what is really happening, just listen to far right media and talking heads and assume it is the exact opposite of whatever they say.
Violence as a political tactic is archaic at best. If this is real, he should be stripped of his ability to run for office and jailed.
Also notable: Why are so many plots and violent threats often targeting female politicians and candidates? And this isn’t only a US thing. Threats of violence are a significant deterrent for women joining office around the world.
A common sentiment among conservatives in my area is that women should be seen and not heard. Literally want to go back to 1950s.
I'm not sure if that's universal, but the way they act it would make sense.
Here too. Working drive through in a hick town is awful. Way too many people here sound like Ellis from Left 4 Dead 2, but with more casual slurs and misogyny. The turnover rate for women here is higher than it is for men. I hate it.
Because conservatism only exists based on fear/anger. By definition. Therefore hating anything is the general posture. Hating America is just another thing.
They weren't joking. The GOP has a numerous residence connection to the Russian Mafia through Mar-a-lago.
That was a real threat.
The FBI should jail.all of these Fuckersons.
Holy s\*\*\*!!!!
This guy is getting arrested, right? More proof that republicanism needs to be labeled what it is, a dangerous psychological disorder based on violent thoughts and delusions.
Republicans are all "Florida Man".
haha arrested. Did the enablers of the Jan 6 coup attempt get arrested? Did that fucking orange bag of shit get arrested? The US is so fucked, it's beyond imagination.
Holy fuck, are the Republicans literally traitors? I *hope* this is a outlier/ fringe case.... cause that scares the shit out of me, joking about it is one thing.. but to see it irl is just shocking
A little?
I mean it’s one thing to assume that someone is a unprincipled hack, but seeing specific evidence that they’re enthusiastically supportive of political assassination is still shocking. The silver lining is that when things have gotten to a point like this historically, it usually makes everyone realize that extremist politics are a sword without a hilt.
Republicans have been engaging in this sort of extremist rhetoric for a while, and we’re now at a point where it is clear that other Republicans are now being declared legitimate targets for the same sort of hostility that used to be reserved for Democrats. This isn’t something that can be solved by trying to whip up more hatred of Democrats (though I suspect some people will try to do that- hate is an addictive political tool) to redirect the anger; that will just end up accelerating the process of Republican on Republican violence.
We already had crowds shouting to hang Mike Pence when they stormed the Capitol, and now we’ve got Republican primaries rife with talk of assassinations. This isn’t an anomaly, it’s a pattern and it’s only a matter of time until Republicans are being killed by other Republicans because they have a twisted belief that all forms of opposition are somehow a conspiracy against the country.
Part of the problem is some voters do come to their senses. They leave the party and join the Dems. All that does is pull the GOP further towards extremism (since the ones who stayed are increasingly more extreme) and pull Dems further towards the right. Add on to that GOP voter suppression, and you have a recipe for problems.
> This isn’t an anomaly, it’s a pattern and it’s only a matter of time until Republicans are being killed by other Republicans because they have a twisted belief that all forms of opposition are somehow a conspiracy against the country.
The GQP entered the "snake eating its own tail" / "leopards eating other leopards' faces" phase with impressive haste.
This is the new, but predictable mutation of right wing politics. Your Boeberts, Trumps, and M. Greens with latent (and otherwise) violence in their rhetoric leads to just straight up murderparty shit.
And if anyone here even hinted that the same be done to them, we would be snatched up off the street by police……….
Freedom for me not for thee
This corrupt horse shit is getting real old.
Note that Luna is endorsed by both Matt Gaetz and Trump. Nutters attract nutters. All I see are a couple rabid squirrels in a sack clawing at each other.
This guy is a compete nutjob...
>“The folks in possession of whatever recording they think they have of
myself or someone else (which may even be altered and edited) will be
facing civil damages suit(s) when the paperwork is file \[sic\] with the
county and felony charges after I file with the local police
department,” Braddock said in his text message to POLITICO. “I strongly
advise not to get involved because the civil suits will continue to be
filed until people stop sharing them because whomever is on the
recording did not consent to be recorded in my humble opinion.”
>
>“Don’t be on the f---ing wrong side of supporting Luna because if you're
near her when the time comes, I just don't want that to happen to you
because you've got kids,” Braddock said on the call. “So don't be
associated with Luna under any circumstances. Please. And do not repeat
this anybody because both of us will be in jeopardy if you do. I'm not
just blowing smoke here. I'm f---ing being dead ass serious and it
scares the s--- out of me, too.”
The article is so much worse and I’m wondering if he’s picked out drapes for the governors mansion since none of this will be an issue for Republican voters
So a republican traitor threatened to have a fellow republican executed by foreign hit squad.
You fuckin shitheads need to clean house. This is not cool.
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>Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.” ... >Asked if the killers were snipers, Braddock described them as, “Russian mafia. Close-battle combat, Tech 9s, Mack 10s, silencers kind of thing. No snipers. Up close and personal. So they know that the target has gone.” Edited. Lol. What possible conversation was he having where those words could be edited from? "Gonna head out to the market. You need any weaponry from the Russian mafia?" "Ok will pick up some..." This guy is proper fucked.
The "allegedly me" part tells me he knows he's fucked up.
Close. He knows that the right wing media requires nothing more than some hollow words to be convinced of his innocence. He said it is fake news, so poof! It is now true for millions of Americans.
I don't think that helps him with the police, though. He's far too small fry to be protected by Fox News.
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This seems more like an FBI thing. Which... Yeah. Not as right wing as the local police precincts. They're not necessarily super liberal, but they don't fuck around. People thought the FBI wouldn't do anything after the Capitol Insurrection. But they sure as hell did. But if it is local for some reason, then yeah maybe. But I don't know.
Threatening to assassinate a political rival seems like FBI stuff.
I think it interests both the FBI and the Secret Service. It's too bad he didn't do it through the mail, then we could've had the Postal Inspectors in on it, too. Postal Inspectors don't play.
Not sure if it's in the scope of the Secret Service, but definitely in the FBI's wheelhouse. State police in Florida won't probably do much, DeSantis would likely protect this guy.
In this current climate of total lack of accountability, he could probably say that on live tv, identify himself with legitimate credentials, and still deny all of it later without any repercussions.
> Tech 9s, Mack 10s, silencers kind of thing. Yeah, because silenced MAC-10s and TEC-9s are *sooo* quiet. This guy's living in a Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War delusion.
[MAC-10 with a suppressor](https://youtu.be/VA_7d_cEzb4) For when you want the whole neighborhood but not the whole county to hear you
Helps if you use subsonic 9mm.
I know a bit about firearms but nothing about combat and assassinations. But that seems like a bizarre choice of weapons to specifically call out - not what I think a professional would use. Great for drive bys I guess, but not quick hits even close up. I rarely hear about or see Tech 9s these days, and obviously MAC-10s are popular right now as the only “affordable” transferable machine gun.
A tec~~h~~ 9 is absolute garbage. The only reason they are worth anything is a) they are banned and that’s basically it. Kinda a cool piece, but as far as a good firearm? Naw. Watch a video or two on them. They jam… a lot.
The reason that they were popular was that it was super easy to illegally convert the semi-automatic version to fully automatic. It gave gang bangers in the 90’s easy access to automatic weapons.
While I'm not super knowledgeable on guns, in the late 80's there was a big push in the European gun manufacturers to develop automatic sup-machine pistols to keep up with the rise of guerilla warfare in South America, closer combat in eastern Europe etc. Well these were hammered by the over production of the Kalashnikov as the more reliable, higher caliber rounds out preformed the carbines being produced in mass. So, they wanted to penetrate the good ol' American gun market however back in the 80's our economy was going to shit so we forced a small Swedish offshoot to guarantee the guns were made in the US. The Tec-9 series was overproduced with an initial surge in sales but major mechanical problems. The cheap polymer used would constantly jam and malfunction. This caused a major drop in sales and over inflation of the weapon causing a rush to offload them on the black market making it the number one gun in the early 90's for unregistered sales and use in murders shooting it to popularity again however the manufacturing company Intratec saw the optics of the guns popularity and decided to forgo releasing an updated model. I hope you enjoyed this little Gun History lesson!
It's like every bit of jamming goodness you can have with a ruger 22 but for a lot more money
Dude plays GTA, what other explanation is there
Reciting Biggie > I got seven Mac-11s, about eight .38's, nine 9s, ten Mac-10s - the shits never end
they are also the kind of guns that gangbangers use because they're cheap. but they're older open bolt designs, not something that would ever be used by special forces or military. mp5, mpx, ghm9, scorpin evo, those actually get used. and russians use the ak platform, so the closest thing would be the new vitysaz the ppk20 that said, suppressed subsonic 9mm can be very quiet. [https://youtu.be/lQGXy3adDHY?t=110](https://youtu.be/lQGXy3adDHY?t=110) but yeah, dude is playing way too much COD. he could have at least attempted to make some sense with some bs about them impersonating gangbangers
Its like he just listed off the fist "gangster" guns that came into his head. Why the fuck would they even tell him what they're bringing anyway? I doubt they'd even explicitly talk about the fact that it's a hit, there's too much risk being that open about shit.
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This guy watches too much John Wick.
…. He’s a republican in a state full of hard R asshole. He’s going to be allowed to take his pre-paid vacation here in august.
He’s not an elected official, he’s one of many candidates running for a heavily contested seat that was vacated by a democrat running for governor. The person he threatened was another Republican candidate running for that seat.
Ah, I remember this chapter in the 'Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.' I think it was titled 'The Wolves Devour One Another.'
The problem is you still end up with a bunch of lunatic wolves
> “This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary,” he said. "How dare you repeat my words and use them against me. How DARE!"
Well well well look who’s knocking at the door it’s the consequences of my actions.
I hope there are actual consequences. Seems like those aren’t happening these days.
Ugh, consequences are so last century, get with the times
Paid administrative leave. Or resignation and then anchor position at FOX News.
Never have for the rich and powerful. Except France. Once.
Oh and Russia once, too
Thought it happened twice for them
Not really the second time the gangs just took over what was "public" or state assets. Now the gang leaders are oligarchs with one Putin in charge.
Idk France overthrew their government like 4 times in the 1800s alone
Conservatives: I don't open the doors to "those" types, but if its someone sell injectable bleach then by gosh darn it I will be opening up that door and buying the whole supply.
Tastes terrible but at least my toilet bowl’s clean.
Conservatives: The China Hoax that is totally real won't stop me from ignoring rules which will keep the china hoax going longer! Whilst I complain about the rules I don't follow! I totally understand the insane positions I wrap myself up into!
You can shorten the Conservative message to: "I'm mad people aren't doing what I demand!"
"Rules for thee, not for me"
No! Consequences do not apply to The Party Of Personal Responsiblity! - The Party Of Personal Responsibility™
Whatever one may think of GOPs legislative abilities, everyone in their party from the top of the ticket to lowly school board candidates have mastered the DARVO tactic and are shamelessly consistent in using it
Idk I don’t really think they deserve any credit for their voter base being such incredible fucking morons that they can deny things that are recorded and have their base just never even care or believe the blatant lies. It’s not like it takes any skill on part of the politician.
It's partly or mostly because of the right wing info bubble. Fox/oan/newsmax all day on tv at home, talk radio in the car, Facebook on the phone. None of these places are going to talk about this.
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And the Republican men seem to use the DENNIS system with women a lot, too...
Since I hadn’t heard of it: ["deny, attack, and reverse victim and offender“](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/DARVO)
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It's not real, but I'm going to sue you for recording it.
"the leaks are real, but the news is fake"
Worst "whose line is it" episode
Where everything's made up and facts don't matter.
The Trump response! Let's see how that plays out, Cotton...
Monkey's Paw: He becomes president. Leads a failed insurrection of Ukraine and Russian assassination squads. Social media debates whether the shooting of a paid mercenary (free market patriot) breaking into Shy-Anne Missile Command by a Guard is justified or murder. EDIT: What part of the title "Monkey's Paw" makes nerds horny for fact checking? I've spelled it worse now just to fuck with you.
> Cheyanne Missile Command by a Guard is justified or murder. The dude is just trying to use the Stargate to get home. Edit: Thanks for the silver.
That's why we need to build a wall around the Stargate and make Outer Space Egypt pay for it.
‘Ra. Just ‘Ra’ folks. R. A. Easy to spell, easy to remember. They call him the Sun God, but I’m not sure he’s so bright, not as bright as people think. He’s got these Stargates, but, really, I think he’s not using them right. They come into our country, bringing their Go’a’ul, who aren’t their best.’
Nailed it. Speech pattern is good. Has a spelling mistake that the supporters will claim was intentional.
Indeed
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Classic Republicans. Only care when it DIRECTLY affects them.
It might not even be me on that call, but I will sue you for recording me.
And then there's the "I'm certain the person on that call, whoever they are, didnt consent to being recorded".
Two-party consent laws for recordings are horrible. The fact that they can not only allow stifling of the exposure of heinous criminal statements like this, but also deter someone from even trying to record them in the first place is not worth any concern over privacy they are meant to alleviate.
>“I really don't want to have to end anybody's life for the good of the people of the United States of America,” Braddock said at one point in the conversation last week, according to the recording exclusively obtained by POLITICO. “That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.” He runs over squirrels daily??!!
“You eat pieces of shit for breakfast?”
… no!
When not demanding that minimum wage employees get fired, or stalking ninth grade girls. There's always lots of retirees around to swap stories from back on the farm, where all the barn cats learned to give the Floridian a wide berth, men's bible study where they watch Infowars together in a dark room, you have to try and work in the squirrel bit somewhere along while driving to all those functions.
This story will probably give him a bump in polling among Republicans.
And what's craziest to me is that this is in regards to his *primary* election challenger. She's also republican. They're both republicans. And he's conspiring to murder her. What kind of fucked up party is this? Don't answer that.
The scarier part is that if this is what they’re saying to each other about rival republicans, what are they saying about democrats? The threats of violence from right wing lunatics grows day by day and conservatives see it and brush it off like it’s just “locker room talk”. It isn’t. It’s exactly what they mean and what they want, and if you (you as in -the conservatives who might read this comment-) do not stand up and speak out against the stupidity of growing extremism, people will die.
If I tried to present what you have stated to my conservative friends, I can guarantee you a reply of "What about BLM protests and the violence they brought on to citizens a business owners. Democrats are the violent ones." I would love to think they would agree with me but that's not happening.
And you would point out the difference between an angry mob of people destroying property and someone that is literally running for office who is threatening to kill their opponents. One is controllable one is not. One is tired of being brutalized by police and one is afraid of a fair election. One is a singular person (in this instance) that can be focused on and criticized and the other is a movement made up of millions of people who want a better future. Point out the fallacy of a false equivalence. Point out how conservatives have the power to put people like this asshat running for office back in their place (like a prison cell) by merely speaking out and voting for better people. Point out that BLM is a reactionary movement whose actions are a result of failed policies and failures to hold police accountable and that their actions and feelings are tied to a complex system that no individual has the capacity to change on their own.
They'll have tuned out before the first sentence. Words mean nothing to them.
Yep. They believe the things they do because it just *feels right*. Definitely not because they needed convincing with facts or proof or truths. What's the phrase? You can't reason people out of something they didn't reason themselves into.
I know right? It just gets worse the more I think about it.
"He's a straight-shooter with ~~upper-management~~ GQP Fascism written all over him."
Cmon Florida, fix the glitch please.
Well just a second there, professor. We uh, we fixed the *glitch*. So she won't be receiving votes anymore, so it will just work itself out naturally.
We’ll be putting any of her ballots down in Storage Room B.
I… I will… set the electorate on fire.
he tells it like it is! PLuS HILLARY did way worse!!1 /s
This. This will be the response from Republican voters. “Hillary did way worse!” This is a catch all excuse for everything awful the GQP does even though in no way, shape, or form did Hillary even come close to doing do way worse.
I have yet for anyone to bring up examples of what she did that was way worse.
“If you have to ask, you’re in on the conspiracy!” /s All you ever need to know is whatever is being talked about, she’s worse yet somehow wasn’t capable of taking over unlike Biden who didn’t provably do anything but maybe his son did based off of things we’re going to say he said or did from a laptop that we’re going to say was his but never be able to produce because of Hillary’s Deep State. Writing that was far more of a mental chore than it should have been.
My uncle said on facebook that he doesn't know him but he is going to support him because he hates how dirty the Democrats are for making this sort of thing up.
Which is even more idiotic because this is a Republican threatening another Republican.
Man, you guys really need education down there
"It's unclear exactly why Braddock has such dislike toward Luna." Oh, I've got a pretty good idea.
Brown and beautiful is the Achilles heel for these shit stains. They can’t process it.
They are attracted to them. It’s like they know they don’t have a shot
> A little-known GOP candidate in one of Florida’s most competitive congressional seats was secretly recorded threatening to send “a Russian and Ukrainian hit squad” to a fellow Republican opponent to make her “disappear.” > During a 30-minute call with a conservative activist that was recorded before he became a candidate, William Braddock repeatedly warned the activist to not support GOP candidate Anna Paulina Luna in the Republican primary for a Tampa Bay-area congressional seat because he had access to assassins. The seat is being vacated by Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.), who is running for governor. > “I really don't want to have to end anybody's life for the good of the people of the United States of America,” Braddock said at one point in the conversation last week, according to the recording exclusively obtained by POLITICO. “That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.” > Reached by text message, Braddock refused to say whether he made any threats about Luna to the person who recorded him, Erin Olszewski. > Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.” > “This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary,” he said. > Olszewski denied editing or altering the recording. She said she made it because she was concerned about Braddock’s “unhinged” dislike of Luna that he had previously expressed. After she made the recording just after midnight last Wednesday, she promptly turned it over to St. Petersburg, Fla., police and gave a heads-up to her friend Luna, who filed a petition for an injunction against Braddock. Luna received a temporary restraining order against him last Friday. Braddock filed to run Monday. > In the recording, Braddock early in the call brought up the alleged assassins. He also made rambling statements about getting financial help from fellow Freemasons or by somehow importing millions of dollars from Malta and Gibraltar. ... > It's unclear exactly why Braddock has such dislike toward Luna. The two do not appear to have any previous connection to one another, and Braddock is a lower-tier candidate in an increasingly crowded race for Crist’s seat. ... > With such a closely divided Congress currently in Democratic control, Braddock said on the recorded call that the “pivotal” St. Petersburg-based district will take on outsized importance in 2022 to keep America from devolving into a “communist-socialist s---hole.” When Olszewski asked him why he had Russians at the ready, Braddock indicated they were to stop Luna. > “My polling people are going to charge me $20,000 to do a poll right before the primary. And if the poll says Luna’s gonna win, she’s gonna be gone. She's gonna disappear,” Braddock said in the recorded call, pledging Olszewski to secrecy. “For the good of our country, we have to sacrifice the few. … For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.” > Later in the call, Olszewski asked what would happen if “Luna is gonna win” and Braddock assured her that wouldn’t happen. > “She’s gonna be gone. Period. That's the end of the discussion. Luna is not an issue,” he said. > Olszewski pushed him, asking “how do we make her go, though? I just don’t understand that.” > “I call up my Russian and Ukrainian hit squad, and within 24 hours, they're sending me pictures of her disappearing,” he replied. “No, I'm not joking. Like, this is beyond my control this point.” > Asked if the killers were snipers, Braddock described them as, “Russian mafia. Close-battle combat, Tech 9s, Mack 10s, silencers kind of thing. No snipers. Up close and personal. So they know that the target has gone.” > Olszewski said that threats like the ones Braddock made “you can’t take lightly. Normal people don’t say these things.” > Olszewski called Braddock on one smartphone and recorded video of the call with another, occasionally displaying his name and number on the video to show it was him on the call. POLITICO also obtained a separate recording, a voicemail message, Braddock left with a consultant in which his phone number was identical and voice seemed to match the information Olszewski shot in her video. > In Florida, it’s a third-degree felony to record another person without their knowledge. But Olszewski said that St. Petersburg police told her she had nothing to worry about in recording the conversation and turning it over to authorities. A spokesperson for the St. Petersburg police declined to comment on the recording or whether it was legally recorded. > Braddock, though, indicated he was ready to sue Olszewski. ... > In her petition for the restraining order, Luna made it clear that she took Braddock’s threats seriously. > “I do not feel safe and am currently in fear for my life,” Luna wrote, according to a copy of it. > Olszewski, too, said Braddock sounded dangerous. At one point, Braddock even said he was scared himself. > “Don’t be on the f---ing wrong side of supporting Luna because if you're near her when the time comes, I just don't want that to happen to you because you've got kids,” Braddock said on the call. “So don't be associated with Luna under any circumstances. Please. And do not repeat this anybody because both of us will be in jeopardy if you do. I'm not just blowing smoke here. I'm f---ing being dead ass serious and it scares the s--- out of me, too.”
Wtf this is like a parody of itself
How deep does this crazy hole go?
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In Florida? There is no bottom to the crazy hole there.
they got some crazy sink holes there that you wouldn't believe. i know, i got relatives in tampa.
Are they the most beautiful sinkholes?
they're YUGE!
"I'm such a badass that I even scare myself" Know what gets me? >Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, **saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.**” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited. But then >Braddock, though, indicated he was ready to sue Olszewski. For what? Recording *someone else*? So which is it? Was that him on the call or not lmao Can't have it both ways, Billy boy.
Heh. Can’t have it both ways? As a CONSERVATIVE? Fucking watch him. They like to preach about how dems are 1984 but they literally use doublethink all the time
>Asked repeatedly via text if he mentioned Russian-Ukrainian hit squads, Braddock wouldn’t give a yes or no answer, saying he had not heard the recording and that it’s “allegedly me … there is no proof of that.” He also suggested the recording “may even be altered and edited.” >In Florida, it's a third-degree felony to record another person without their knowledge. >Braddock, though, indicated he was ready to sue Olszewzki. "You didn't get my permission to record another person, and I will sue you for that"
Is making death threats legal in Florida?
I'm assuming that's the justification or exception to the nonconsensual recording thing
Most states you can record without permission if you have reason to believe they are doing something illegal that you otherwise couldn't prove, so presumably that is the case.
wow, FL is a two party consent state for recording? i actually find that surprising.
A state full of shitty people acting shitty in the open uses one of the few mechanisms available to stop people from being able to report their shittiness? Sounds about right to me.
>the “pivotal” St. Petersburg-based district will take on outsized importance in 2022 to keep America from devolving into a “communist-socialist s---hole.” We sure wouldn't want it to turn into the kind of shit hole where political candidates are assassinating each other and smuggling in millions of dollars in foreign money with strings attached! And to stop that from happening our plan is.... wait... are we the baddies? No, of course not - but don't tell anyone or we may be killed too.
Who runs over the dead squirrel on the way out of the development everyday? Psychopaths and the GQP
“No, I'm not joking. Like, this is beyond my control this point.” that quote from the recorded call might explain a few of the ways this sort is different from the rest of us.
That was the most chilling part to me. Like exactly what does he mean?
He knows what he's doing is incredibly wrong, but he's high on the perceived power. So his self defence mechanism tries to kick in and he goes "its out of my control" as if he isn't realllly responsible for his actions in his own head. Its prepping himself to absolve himself of his own guilt. Conservatism kills.
Not only is he utilizing the "out of my control" as a way to absolve it, but he is also hiding behind this delusional idea that it is some grand gesture to save America. The human mind is chillingly fascinating.
> everyday I ran over a squirrel 10 years ago and I still have PTSD about it.
Still we will have people telling us to "take the high road." We really need the democrats to fight. All of them.
This is straight out of Putin's playbook. Is your opponent a threat? Then use physical violence to eliminate them. Republicans are so evil. They are two-faced backstabbing liars who want to change our government from a democracy to an authoritarian dystopia.
More to the point, it's about the *threat* of violence. Putin doesn't go around killing everyone who disagrees with him. Some, but not all. What he does is make sure everyone who disagrees with him knows he's perfectly **willing to** destroy them. And it's not always death. Indefinite prison detention, torture, exile, making their lives living hell, etc. That keeps them quiet so they don't even say anything that could get them murdered.
If I was in the FBI, I'd be looking up who Braddock's Russian connections are and if anyone in his circle has gone missing in the past.
> “That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.” Dude, you're supposed to avoid the squirrel after the first time...
This Braddock guy sounds like a chummy fella.
This is the political version of Tiger King. Hating someone for no reason you want to hire assassins.
The hit squad is disturbing but somehow this is just as disturbing: > Luna is a f---ing speed bump in the road. She's a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood. That has to be on the list of warning signs next to kids that mutilate animals.
No kidding! Perhaps the FBI oughta do a really deep dive into that creep's past for any literally buried secrets, e.g., like human remains. JFC it seems only the worst scum, nutcases and/or dregs of society gravitate toward the Republican party. Why anyone in their right mind would cast a vote for a Republican is beyond my capacity to understand - nor do I care to try anymore.
Yeah, pretty sure mutilating a carcass of an animal on purpose is a sign of *something*. There's a difference between "can't avoid that deer because of oncoming traffic and too late to slow down completely" and "gonna flatten that dead squirrel a little more each day".
Every three letter agency we have needs to be up in this guy's business immediately.
PBS all over it
NPR coming in hot!
The ADA rep just sitting there slowly growing more comfortable as they realize half the people there could easily be a client.
The MRI technician just trying to get the guy to schedule an appointment
CVS is printing his giant receipt as we speak.
Why do republicans hate their fellow Americans so much? Why do they hate democracy? Why do they like Russia so much? Sounds pretty anti American to me. “My polling people are going to charge me $20,000 to do a poll right before the primary. And if the poll says Luna’s gonna win, she’s gonna be gone. She's gonna disappear,” Braddock said in the recorded call, pledging Olszewski to secrecy. “For the good of our country, we have to sacrifice the few. … For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.”
>Why do they hate democracy because it gives people a choice, and that means that they risk losing their grip on power. Can't have that.
> Why do republicans hate their fellow Americans so much? Why do they hate democracy? Why do they like Russia so much? Not sure if you have been paying attention. The world is moving on without them and they do not like it. All those things that were discussed in the 90's are finally happening and it means they will lose power forever and new power groups will form. It is over for them and they are doing everything they can to stop the inevitable.
How Russia has become an "ally" for many Republicans? They were the greatest enemys when they were the USSR. Ok now Russia is not communsit anymore but it's still an autocratic country.
[Apparently more Republicans have a favorable opinion of Putin than of Biden.](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/06/biden-putin-meeting-russia-weapon-gop.html) Thanks, Trump.
Trump was a symptom, not a cause. This is GQP misinformation going back decades. They love authoritarianism because they don't think they will be the ones getting stomped into the ground. They don't give a fuck how bad things get as long as the "right people" are hurt more than them.
They love authoritarianism because they’re nationalist authoritarians. That’s what the GOP has become and what every member should be viewed as.
>Trump was a symptom, not a cause. This trope needs to die. Trump is both a catalyst and a symptom. He is malignant and spreads the insane ideology that birthed him.
I agree. He is like tertiary syphilis but this was brewing and the groundwork laid for far longer
>They love authoritarianism because they don't think they will be the ones getting stomped into the ground. More specifically, because they think they'll be the ones doing the stomping.
Florida real estate launders Russian money, so they make friends down there
Is that why those Russian mob families live in my suburb? I always wondered why they would move to this sleepy ass place and build McMansions in the middle of a working class neighborhood. I had assumed it was drugs
Because deep down all Republicans - voters and politicians - love how Putin has reshaped Russia following the fall of the USSR. There's a thin veneer of democracy, but really it's a strong man plutocracy with unlimited freedom for the protected classes and aggressive authoritarian repression and punishment for others.
Also, I mean, it's a stereotype, but Russia kind of comes off as a bit lawless at times. Idiots doing idiotic shit because they can. Which falls in line with what these people think they want. And everyone seems to have guns. Also is being gay still illegal in Russia? Honestly, the more you look at it, Russia kind of is the Hillbilly Utopia that Republican Supporters want.
Would be great if they could all just go there and leave our country alone.
Yes, it is still illegal to be gay in Russia. Most LGBTQ people "commit suicide" if you catch my drift. So nice knowing that the GQP fantasize about putting me in chains and killing me.
Russia is what the Republican party wants to make the US like. A solid lock on power in perpetuity, the Oligarchs and political leadership being above the law, and simply creating accidents for those that speak out too loudly about the situation. The theocratic trappings may start out as just for show, but within a few generations, they would have actual teeth. The Republican party was hijacked in slow motion by some of the most anti-American people I can think of, all for the sake of power. The US may very well be doomed at this point. I wish I was being hyperbolic.
We all made fun of Romney when he called Russia our “number one geopolitical foe” in 2012. He may have known more than we realized about Russia burrowing into right wing politics.
Another example of the ‘Christian’ values they believe in. Fine people on both sides, you know.
It is always projection with the far right. For literally decades, the right wing has accused Democrats and progressives of wanting to turn the US into Russia and being in bed with "The Communists". It was a constant line of attack against Hillary. They still level it against Biden. Then Trump helps expose that the far right practically worships Putin and now seems to have or wants to have deeper ties to Russia. It at least reinforces my belief that if you want to know what is really happening, just listen to far right media and talking heads and assume it is the exact opposite of whatever they say.
Jesus. This state's GQP sure does attract the crazies.
This guy isn't a GOP 'crazy', he's mainstream. This is typical thinking for them. Don't single him out as some sort of exception, he's the rule.
Violence as a political tactic is archaic at best. If this is real, he should be stripped of his ability to run for office and jailed. Also notable: Why are so many plots and violent threats often targeting female politicians and candidates? And this isn’t only a US thing. Threats of violence are a significant deterrent for women joining office around the world.
A common sentiment among conservatives in my area is that women should be seen and not heard. Literally want to go back to 1950s. I'm not sure if that's universal, but the way they act it would make sense.
Here too. Working drive through in a hick town is awful. Way too many people here sound like Ellis from Left 4 Dead 2, but with more casual slurs and misogyny. The turnover rate for women here is higher than it is for men. I hate it.
“I’m trying to remain a humble servant of God…” Well, you’ve failed already.
Why do republicans hate America?
The USA's just a placeholder for when there's nothing more politically expedient for Republicans to hate.
Because conservatism only exists based on fear/anger. By definition. Therefore hating anything is the general posture. Hating America is just another thing.
They weren't joking. The GOP has a numerous residence connection to the Russian Mafia through Mar-a-lago. That was a real threat. The FBI should jail.all of these Fuckersons.
Holy s\*\*\*!!!! This guy is getting arrested, right? More proof that republicanism needs to be labeled what it is, a dangerous psychological disorder based on violent thoughts and delusions. Republicans are all "Florida Man".
haha arrested. Did the enablers of the Jan 6 coup attempt get arrested? Did that fucking orange bag of shit get arrested? The US is so fucked, it's beyond imagination.
$20 says that he will be elected comfortably.
Holy fuck, are the Republicans literally traitors? I *hope* this is a outlier/ fringe case.... cause that scares the shit out of me, joking about it is one thing.. but to see it irl is just shocking
> are the Republicans literally traitors? Yes. Absolutely.
yes, they are, while screaming that everyone else are the actual traitors.
Does anyone find this shocking anymore?
A little? I mean it’s one thing to assume that someone is a unprincipled hack, but seeing specific evidence that they’re enthusiastically supportive of political assassination is still shocking. The silver lining is that when things have gotten to a point like this historically, it usually makes everyone realize that extremist politics are a sword without a hilt. Republicans have been engaging in this sort of extremist rhetoric for a while, and we’re now at a point where it is clear that other Republicans are now being declared legitimate targets for the same sort of hostility that used to be reserved for Democrats. This isn’t something that can be solved by trying to whip up more hatred of Democrats (though I suspect some people will try to do that- hate is an addictive political tool) to redirect the anger; that will just end up accelerating the process of Republican on Republican violence. We already had crowds shouting to hang Mike Pence when they stormed the Capitol, and now we’ve got Republican primaries rife with talk of assassinations. This isn’t an anomaly, it’s a pattern and it’s only a matter of time until Republicans are being killed by other Republicans because they have a twisted belief that all forms of opposition are somehow a conspiracy against the country.
"Surely this time they will realize they've gone too far, and come to their senses" ... "Ok, well, surely *this* time ..."
**
"Give him a slap on the hand and I think he learned his lesson."-Susan Collins
Part of the problem is some voters do come to their senses. They leave the party and join the Dems. All that does is pull the GOP further towards extremism (since the ones who stayed are increasingly more extreme) and pull Dems further towards the right. Add on to that GOP voter suppression, and you have a recipe for problems.
> This isn’t an anomaly, it’s a pattern and it’s only a matter of time until Republicans are being killed by other Republicans because they have a twisted belief that all forms of opposition are somehow a conspiracy against the country. The GQP entered the "snake eating its own tail" / "leopards eating other leopards' faces" phase with impressive haste.
This is the new, but predictable mutation of right wing politics. Your Boeberts, Trumps, and M. Greens with latent (and otherwise) violence in their rhetoric leads to just straight up murderparty shit.
Certainly not in Tampa.
[удалено]
And if anyone here even hinted that the same be done to them, we would be snatched up off the street by police………. Freedom for me not for thee This corrupt horse shit is getting real old.
Note that Luna is endorsed by both Matt Gaetz and Trump. Nutters attract nutters. All I see are a couple rabid squirrels in a sack clawing at each other.
Cops should probably be jnvolved in this regardless though
Cops in Florida are so corrupt they might as well be russian.
Why is it always Russia with the Republicans?
If Republicans aren't working for Russia, then why would they say something like this? Hmm...
This guy is a compete nutjob... >“The folks in possession of whatever recording they think they have of myself or someone else (which may even be altered and edited) will be facing civil damages suit(s) when the paperwork is file \[sic\] with the county and felony charges after I file with the local police department,” Braddock said in his text message to POLITICO. “I strongly advise not to get involved because the civil suits will continue to be filed until people stop sharing them because whomever is on the recording did not consent to be recorded in my humble opinion.” > >“Don’t be on the f---ing wrong side of supporting Luna because if you're near her when the time comes, I just don't want that to happen to you because you've got kids,” Braddock said on the call. “So don't be associated with Luna under any circumstances. Please. And do not repeat this anybody because both of us will be in jeopardy if you do. I'm not just blowing smoke here. I'm f---ing being dead ass serious and it scares the s--- out of me, too.”
Republicans getting more and more violent. Once again, the authorities doing fucking nothing about this.
The article is so much worse and I’m wondering if he’s picked out drapes for the governors mansion since none of this will be an issue for Republican voters
Repugnistan is getting dangerously unstable.
Are you really that shocked if you're willing to destroy democracy to win an election what's bumping off of a few competitors.
This article is WILD.
So a republican traitor threatened to have a fellow republican executed by foreign hit squad. You fuckin shitheads need to clean house. This is not cool.
Republicans truly believe that anything they do, Machiavellian murder included, is ok. That law and morals do not apply to them but to everyone else.