Yesterday the shooting in DC was all over the media, this morning Thanksgiving parades were major stories until the press conference with Jeanine Pirro and Kash Patel.
Scroll down for my thoughts about how the administration is spinning the shooting. This is what I wrote before the press conference and more news came out about the shooter.
While the parades across the country are celebratory, by chance when I decided to take a photo of what was on my TV screen as I wrote this the woman in the foreground was wearing a costume that reminded me of what many of the protesters against ICE have been wearing. These have been inspired by protestors in my hometown of Portland.
The above is from an article in the right-wing publication Breitbart.
As far as my own Thanksgiving goes, what I am thankful for today in addition to having a family and friends I love, is that the DC shooter not only didn’t turn out to be Hispanic, but that he
I am sure this is the worst news for Trump & Co. I have absolutely no doubt they hoped he would turn out to be an illegal Hispanic violent felon.
Here’s an excerpt from the above article:
The CIA said the suspect had worked for multiple U.S. government agencies in Afghanistan, including a CIA-backed unit in the southern province of Kandahar.
Afghan units trained by the CIA played an important role in the American evacuation in August 2021, and although many Afghan military units dissolved during the Taliban takeover, the agency’s partner units remained operational and helped transport U.S. citizens and Afghans who worked with U.S. forces to Kabul to be evacuated.
The president, speaking from his Mar-a-Lago resort during the Thanksgiving holiday week, called the shooting “an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror” and blamed his presence in the U.S. on “those infamous flights.”
I’m sure we will learn more about the motivation of 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal. I doesn’t take a genius to speculate that in some way he believed he was wronged by the Trump administration. We can guess that he might have been enraged enough to do what he did. It could go beyond a denial of services to himself and involve family left back in Afghanistan left at the mercy of the Taliban. He may have been unable to get them moved to the United States. They could have already been murdered by them.
I hate to wish for such a horrible thing, but let’s face it, this is absolutely positively something the administration does not want to come out if it is true. They want to demonize this person. Such a story will make him a person many will see as deserving sympathy even as they condemn what he did.
Meanwhile Trump & Co. are not only making out that the shooter is a criminal, which of course he is, but blaming Biden for the program that brought him here. The current CIA director, John Radcliffe, said in a statement that the suspect “should have never been allowed to come here.”
This is from The NY Times (subscription)
Excerpt:
In July, the Trump administration withdrew humanitarian protections for Afghans who had resettled in the United States, citing Afghanistan’s “improved security situation, and its stabilizing economy.”
But many Afghans would see the situation in their country, now under Taliban rule, differently.
Other good news, minor as it is, comes with the news just announced by Jeanine Pirro, is as follows:
He lived in Bellingham, WA with his wife and five children.
He drove across the country, a Driving from Bellingham, a 2,776 mile drive, not armed to the teeth but with a 357 magnum revolver. These have no more than a six bullet capacity. (More about the gun > 1
Pirro in the press conference blamed the Biden program for allowing people to enter the country who are not properly vetted. She has no idea how this person was vetted.
Kash Patel came on TV with his first words praising Trump. I will post this now and add updates if they expand on the story.
Related:
FBI Director Kash Patel dodged a question about whether the suspected Washington, D.C., gunman was granted asylum during Donald Trump’s presidency.
“Question for Director Patel: Was the suspect granted asylum, and if so, when did that happen – under which administration?” a reporter asked Thursday morning during a news conference. “And did authorities miss any signs, either the asylum process or even back when he reportedly worked for the CIA, If you could talk about that?”
The FBI director avoided answering the question and continued blaming Biden-era policies.
Here’s my Thanksgiving wish to my readers.
If ICE doesn’t take the day off they will be the turkeys pooping on some people’s parade.
.
A Smith and Wesson 357 Magnum revolver with a long barrel has a six bullet capacity and with a short barrel five bullets. These can cost up to $700. The maximum bullet capacity of the semi-automatic pistols most law enforcement officers now carry varies widely depending on the model, but many standard models typically hold between 10 to 20 rounds.
Revolvers do not use bullet clips which enable someone to reload them quickly. They use speed loaders that look like this:
This is relevant because if someone was bent on killing a lot of people with a handgun they wouldn’t use a revolver.
It is also worth noting that the shooter drove to DC because to fly or use other public transportaton would have made it difficult or impossible to bring a weapon.
