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The Attorney General’s Bizarre Attack on Parents

The Attorney General’s Bizarre Attack on Parents
By Todd Strandberg

In early October, Attorney General Merrick Garland issued an unusual directive to the FBI and federal law enforcement officials across the nation to focus on alleged criminal conduct in protests by parents against school boards.

Garland directed the FBI and U.S. attorneys in the next 30 days to convene meetings with federal, state, and local leaders within 30 days to “facilitate the discussion of strategies for addressing threats against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff,” according to a letter.

And the DOJ made sure that school boards and officials will be trained in how to be claimed as victims who can call on those enforcement mechanisms. From the DOJ press release:

“The Justice Department will also create specialized training and guidance for local school boards and school administrators. This training will help school board members and other potential victims understand the type of behavior that constitutes threats, how to report threatening conduct to the appropriate law enforcement agencies, and how to capture and preserve evidence of threatening conduct to aid in the investigation and prosecution of these crimes.”

Outrage ensued immediately and appropriately from parents and their organizations and commentators who are infuriated that a threat of federal law enforcement is being used to try to scare them out of constitutionally protected speech.

Many parents across the country have spoken out recently with unprecedented anger in unprecedented numbers at school board meetings and beyond. Many of their complaints have been about Critical Race Theory in classrooms, mask mandates, and explicit materials for minors about sexuality and gender.

Garland’s directive came one day after a North Carolina school board adopted a policy that would discipline or dismiss teachers if they incorporate critical race theory into their teaching of the history of the United States.

While most of our major cities have a soaring problem with murder and robbery, we have Garland worried about unruly parents at a school board meeting. I read several stories on this issue, and not once did someone cite an example of a meeting that involved violent crime.

Keep in mind that a real crime requires violence or a threat to commit either violence or some other illegal act. But most of the offensive conduct being referenced by the media and school officials is not criminal. Is it criminal to say, for example, “we will get you,” or “we will not forget this,” or “your career in education is dead”?

The Attorney General has no business involving himself in school boards’ crime problems. This action is like the Coast Guard becoming concerned about parking violations in North Dakota. If there are any issues with matters at school board meetings, it should be the concern of local police or city administrators.

Several people in Washington have called Garland for his odd directive. “Garland knows this is dangerous nonsense. I personally know that he knows it.” That’s from Andrew McCarthy, who worked under Garland in the DOJ.

McCarthy further wrote that “Garland incorrectly — indeed, outrageously for someone of his experience as a Justice Department official and federal appellate judge — claimed that free-speech principles yield not only to “threats of violence” but also to “efforts to intimidate individuals based on their views.”

Republican Congressman for Colorado’s 4th District, Ken Buck, has penned an excellent reply for Garland’s overreach, taking apart the AG’s “weaponization” of the DOJ point by point…

“Your memorandum is a politically-motivated abuse of power and displays a lack of reasoned, sound judgment… confronting parents to oppose the views of the Biden administration and its socialist agenda…”

At any other time, Garland would be forced by outrage to apologize for this type of action. Because a special level of stupidity has taken over America, he was not forced to back down. At a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Garland said the directive was part of “a rising tide of violence” targeting a range of public figures, from teachers and election administrators to members of Congress and the media. We need to fear out-of-control government leaders 10 times more than we do crime waves.

It is so fortunate that the Republican senators refused to vote on Garland’s nomination when Obama selected him as his last Supreme Court candidate. Garland would vote with the other lefty justices, so we could have already lost many of our liberties to this man.

The actions by Garland show why we are slowly losing our nation to the leftist agenda. Most of them always vote for what the party wants. They are of one giant collective mind on most issues. Once there is enough of them to take full control, freedom will end in America.

“When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan” (Proverbs 29:2, ESV).

– Todd

Original Article

Image Credit: © Chris Dorney

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