Caller allegedly stated, “the Congressman deserves death as well as anyone who is involved in his office.”

BY U.S. REP. TONY WIED

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following was in the Aug. 1 “The Weekly Wied Wire” e-letter.

I want to be very clear: political violence has no place in our country, regardless of your political affiliation.

In recent months, elected officials have faced an alarming rise in threats and intimidation tactics. Last week, we learned that the individual who had been calling and threatening the lives of my staff and me is not just a member, but one of only nine individuals serving as a representative for the Brown County Democratic Party. 

Several weeks ago, the individual, who identified himself to my staff member, called my Washington, D.C., office and stated multiple times that “the Congressman should be given the death penalty”, and “the Congressman deserves death as well as anyone who is involved in his office.” My team immediately reported this to Capitol Police, who confirmed the man’s identity and are continuing to investigate the matter.

To date, the Brown County Democratic Party has not taken any action against this individual. I hope they will act swiftly to hold him accountable. If someone on my team behaved this way, they would be fired immediately and held responsible.

This underscores a troubling pattern of hostility that goes beyond political disagreement. Just last week, protesters, including the former Walworth County Democratic Party Chairwoman, staged a mock funeral procession at the home of Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), leaving a cardboard coffin at his doorstep. These actions, taken by individuals in positions of influence within the Democratic Party, reflect a troubling pattern of behavior that undermines the values of civil discourse and public safety.

In the wake of the horrific killing of the state representative in Minnesota and multiple assassination attempts on President Trump’s life, we must be very clear that this type of rhetoric and violence against elected officials and members of our staff will not be tolerated.

We are blessed to live in the United States of America, and we need to remember that we are all Americans first, regardless of political party. We should be able to disagree on policy without resorting to personal attacks or wishing harm on one another. We must denounce this type of language wherever we see it, turn down the temperature, and get back to having passionate but respectful policy debates.

EDITOR’S NOTE: WBAY has followed up on this with a news story. Go here to read it.