Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY, 8th District) gave an insightful interview about the recent spike in threats against her colleagues and her to the Canadian Broadcast Company (CBC). Rep. Slaughter gave a synopsis of the ugly atmosphere that has developed since Congress began enacting health care reform last year. What is most interesting about this interview, however, is that Ms. Slaughter recounted how one Congressman defended himself against a death threat from a constituent.
You can listen to Ms. Slaughter's interview at: >As It Happens-Latest-Show-Web Page Please click the link which states "Part 1". The Interview starts two minutes into the first part of the show and lasts about six minutes.
This interview reveals how disturbed Rep. Slaughter and other Congressmembers are about the recent death threats and violence against them.
What's most amazing is that Rep. Slaughter told the CBC about how one of her colleagues (unidentified, except that Slaughter referred to the person as a "he") defended himself against a death threat.
According to Slaughter, this Congressman received a telephone call early one morning at 2:30 AM. The caller informed the Congressman that he was a "dead man" (and probably a lot more things, which the Congresswoman was too polite to mention).
The Congressman had Caller ID, which the threatener had not thought to block. Subsequently, the Congressman called the angry constituent back, said that he knew where the malcontent lived and informed him that he would be happy to meet him immediately and "settle this in person."
The angry voter suddenly backed down and meekly said, "Gee Congressman, all I was trying to do is let off some steam."
This anecdote just shows us that, once again, if you scratch a bully, underneath you'll find a coward.
YOU CAN STREAM THIS INTERVIEW AT: