One-third of Senate Republicans are calling on Attorney General Merrick Garland to take action against a wave of violence that has hit pro-life organizations after the leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion overturning Roe v. Wade.
Led by Sens. James Lankford of Oklahoma and Jerry Moran or Kansas, 16 GOP lawmakers want to know what the Justice Department is doing about the “disturbing trend of harassment, intimidation, and violence against religious and other pro-life organizations.”
“We are deeply concerned that this trend will continue should the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade in the coming weeks unless the Department of Justice, the FBI, and US Attorneys’ Offices take a firm public stance and proactive response against these violent threats,” the letter stated.
The senators noted that last October, the Justice Department “wasted no time in publicly responding to threats of violence against educators and school administrators related to COVID-19 policies.” This was a reference to Garland’s decision to sic FBI agents and federal prosecutors on conservative parents at local school board meetings.
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“Yet in comparison to the current climate, in which multiple acts—not just threats—of violence have been documented, we have not seen the commensurate public response from the Department of Justice that the moment demands,” the lawmakers added.
“The criminal acts perpetrated against those who oppose legalized abortion are a clear effort to intimidate or coerce individuals who hold pro-life values. We call on the Department of Justice to take these actions seriously and work to prevent violence and, when such acts are perpetrated, investigate and prosecute them as appropriate,” the letter continued.
“We are dismayed that the open and public urgency with which the Department of Justice undertook efforts in the name of public safety last year is not being replicated currently to protect religious and other pro-life organizations and individuals.”
The letter was dated June 7. That was the day a Buffalo crisis pregnancy center was firebombed.
The next day, a California man was arrested outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. He claimed he wanted to kill Kavanaugh in response to the leaked opinion in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which would overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion nationwide.
On Wednesday, a federal grand jury indicted Nicholas Roske for attempted murder in the Kavanaugh incident.
But the violence has been an almost daily occurrence since the opinion by Justice Samuel Alito was leaked to the media on May 2.
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The pro-life Family Research Council has documented 48 violent attacks from coast to coast on churches, crisis pregnancy centers and other pro-life outlets between then and June 13 – including one near Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
The ongoing violence against churches and pro-life centers is so blatant that even liberal columnist Kathleen Parker of The Washington Post has noticed.
In a column on Tuesday, she maintained the incidents should be investigated as terrorist acts.
“It is a terrible irony that the people who want to protect life must put their own lives at risk,” Parker wrote. “The pregnancy centers that were destroyed or damaged do nothing worse than help vulnerable pregnant women through counseling and resources, as well as provide diapers and other baby supplies. So much for pro-lifers caring for babies only until they’re born.”
“Despite these attacks — and the alleged attempted assassination of Kavanaugh — President Biden hasn’t been moved to condemn them,” Parker added.
“This is an outrage, period. Biden should have used a bullhorn to condemn all the above, presuming he was apprised of them. He surely would have done so had the justice in question been any liberal. Can you imagine the outcry from the media? He surely would have strongly condemned the firebombings had the targets been abortion clinics run by Planned Parenthood.”
In their letter, the GOP senators want Garland to tell them the Justice Department’s strategy to prevent violence and threats against abortion foes, what resources the department requires to publicize and implement this strategy, and what role it has played “in investigating and prosecuting individuals committing violence against pro-life organizations and individuals.”
Garland was asked to answer the questions by last Friday. It’s unclear if he has responded.
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