Matt Walsh speaks on stage during The Daily Wire Presents Backstage Live in Nashville, Tennessee, on Aug 14. (Jason Davis / Getty Images)
By Michael Schwarz September 30, 2024 at 8:10am
More than anything else, the politicization of law enforcement signals the imminent arrival of totalitarianism.
Thus, for as long as free speech remains in partial effect — that is, until the deep state has silenced dissenting voices for good — we must make sure that the most egregious examples of this politicization remain in the news cycle for as long as possible.
In case you missed it last week, or in case you have forgotten it amid the heartbreaking damage wrought by Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina and elsewhere, conservative commentator Matt Walsh and many others on the social media platform X voiced legitimate suspicions about the motives of federal law enforcement officials who made the shocking decision to release a letter allegedly written by Ryan Routh, the lunatic suspected of trying to assassinate former President Donald Trump in Florida on Sept. 15.
“If there was ever any doubt about whether or not these people want Trump to be killed, well, now there’s no doubt,” Walsh said in a video posted to X.
For Walsh and others, a key piece of evidence involves the FBI’s very different handling of another deranged person’s writings.
Recall that after transgender shooter Audrey Hale — a woman who identified as a man — murdered six people, including three children, before losing her own life at a Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, in March 2023, FBI agents immediately got their hands on the shooter’s manifesto, lied about their intent to release the document and then kept it concealed from the public for as long as possible.
In fact, not until November did portions of the manifesto become public thanks to independent journalism and local law enforcement.
Other parts of the manifesto only came to light earlier this month, when the Tennessee Star published 90 unredacted pages.
In other words, federal law enforcement worked hard to keep Hale’s dark and disturbed writings from reaching the public.
Do you trust the FBI and DOJ?
“For a year they said, ‘Well, we can’t release any of this shooter’s writings.’ And why did they say they can’t release it? Because it would be a danger to the public,” Walsh said. It might “inspire other copycats to do the same thing.”
.@MattWalshBlog on the FBI’s hypocrisy in handling the Covenant School shooter’s manifesto versus Trump’s shooter’s letter:
“So the ramblings of the trans-identified covenant school shooter… couldn’t release it, it might inspire other shootings. This one we can release, even… pic.twitter.com/hSTD2QMvgI
— The Matt Walsh Show (@MattWalshShow) September 23, 2024
Apparently the FBI has no such copycat-related concerns when it comes to attempts on Trump’s life.
As Walsh noted in a separate post on X, Routh’s letter “openly encourages more shootings and offers to pay for them.”
They didn’t release the Covenant shooter manifesto because they were allegedly afraid it would inspire more shootings. And yet within a week they release a letter from Trump’s would-be assassin where he openly encourages more shootings and offers to pay for them. https://t.co/CXxlyHsjlN
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) September 23, 2024
A screen shot of the letter showed that Routh (or whoever wrote it) offered $150,000 to anyone who would “complete the job.”
The astonishing release of that letter confirmed for X users what many have believed for a long time: In short, powerful people want Trump eliminated.
For instance, one X user saw the release as proof that “without a doubt they want Trump dead.”
The obvious reason the DOJ released Routh’s letter to the world, but not school shooter manifestos tells you without a doubt they want Trump dead. pic.twitter.com/idrC3TFfvX
— Billy Joe Cactus (@BillyJoeEdwards) September 23, 2024
Likewise, another X user correctly noted that the “DOJ just put a bounty out on President Trump‘s head by releasing this.”
DOJ Releases Florida Wanna-Be Assassin Letter: Why would they do this? The Ryan Routh’s letter offers a $150,000 bounty to whoever successfully assassinates Trump.
Are you kidding me?
What purpose does that serve?The FBI wouldn’t release the Nashville shooter’s manifesto due to… pic.twitter.com/0jdjcIAnny— John Cremeans USA (@JohnCremeansUSA) September 23, 2024
Meanwhile, Tammy Bruce of Fox News saw the letter’s release as part of a pattern. She called it “now impossible to suggest that all of the violence aimed at President Trump is somehow just coincidental.”
How is it that Nashville trans shooter targeting the Christian school murdering 3 children and 3 adults, has material sealed by the court due to ‘concerns for its impact on the community’ and ‘copyright.’ But a letter from attempted Trump assassin encouraging other people to…
— Tammy Bruce (@HeyTammyBruce) September 23, 2024
In short, news cycles come and go. But we cannot allow certain developments to disappear from our consciousness. Evil people rely on the complacency that ensues.
Walsh and the others, of course, had it right. The difference in the way federal officials treated the two documents leads to only one possible conclusion: They wanted the contents of Hale’s manifesto concealed. And that means — dark as it is to contemplate — that they also wanted the contents of Routh’s letter disseminated.
Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.
Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.
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