An Educational Tonkin Gulf? The NSBA Apologies for the Letter that Triggered the Controversial Federal Operation
Category: News & Politics
Via: vic-eldred • 3 years ago • 32 commentsBy: JONATHAN TURLEY
We recently discussed the controversy following the letter of the National School Boards Association (NSBA) asking the Justice Department to investigate parents causing disruptions or making threats at school board meetings. The letter included a reference to using the Patriot Act against possible domestic terrorism. Attorney General Merrick Garland responded a few days later with an order to the entire Department of Justice to monitor school board meetings around the country and coordinate a response with local officials. Now the NSBA has issued an apology. The question is whether Garland will now rescind or amend his much criticized memo. It has the feel of an educational version of the Gulf of Tonkin incident . Should we reconsider our deployment in light of the false premise that triggered the escalation of hostilities?
The NSBA stated “On behalf of NSBA, we regret and apologize for the letter . . . there was no justification for some of the language included in the letter.”
Notably, recent coverage indicates that the NSBA coordinated the letter with the White House before it was issued. A significant number of people at the organization (and likely some in the Administration) saw early drafts of this letter. Not one appears to have objected to the reckless and extreme language directed toward parents, citing a handful of cases.
For his part, Garland stated that none of these past disruptions would constitute domestic terrorism. However, as I discussed earlier , he further pledged that he will not use such laws against parents objecting to critical race theory or other issues at these meetings. However, those answers only begged the question of why the Justice Department has pledged this broad effort to monitor and respond to threats at these meetings. If these are not matters of domestic terrorism, why is the Justice Department implementing this effort? The letter does not cite any pattern of criminal threats or their interstate or federal profile.
This question was picked up in a letter to Garland from half of the eight members of the Commission on Civil Rights. They requested “specific examples” of “harassment, intimidation and threats of violence” which Garland claimed as evidence for the need for federal intervention in parent protests at schools.
Now even the NSBA agrees that its letter was over-the-top and extreme.
The AG is again being grilled today before the US Senate.
Sen. Dick Durbin just told AG Garland that the people engaging in threatening behavior in school board meetings "are the same people . . . some of whom we saw on January 6th."
Thankfully, he was kept off the Supreme Court
Listening to him now, it's obvious how dishonest and ideologically corrupt he is.
He's a "f"ing liar, he new about the Loudoun County rape incident because that is what caused the NSBA to send him the letter that he responded to in the first place.
According to Garland's testimony, we know more than he does.
The famous "never let a good crisis go to waste; even if we have to make one up" from Durbin.
He didn't provide any proof of his allegation I take it?
Nor did the AG and all his attorneys over at DOJ. They couldn't cite a single example.
I don't think he'll do either. These actions are pretty much in line with some of the over-reaching we've seen come from this administration.
Amen and a shitload of it
No he can't. During his confirmation, he pledged to not be a political pawn of president Biden. To rescind the letter would be an obvious admission that he is such a pawn.
His actions already make him a political pawn.
He can now join the list of disgraced partisan DA's. That would be Eric Holder, Loretta Lynch and now Merrick Garland:
I love how you forget Bill Barr. It's so "Vic".
Wiliam Barr may have been the finest AG in my lifetime. Of course, what Obama did to the Department of Justice can't be defended.
"Eric Holder was the first attorney general in history to be held in contempt of Congress..."
Well, Holder was/is such a contemptible person to begin with!
That in itself is serious delusion.
He told us what he was. He said he was Obama's wingman! Holder resented this country even more than Obama did.
Yep.
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If you say so, it's good enough for me.
Truth and reality do have a liberal bias.
AG Garland just conceded that most of the examples cited in the Board letter "would not be covered by state or federal law and they would be protected by the First Amendment."
"Thank God you are not on the Supreme Court. You should resign in disgrace, Judge."...Sen Tom Cotton
"Many people are under the impression the National School Board Association , the entity that sent a missive to the White House declaring the actions of engaged and concerned parents should be considered domestic terrorists and hate crimers, has retracted their letter and apologized.
In reality, their reaction to the wave of outrage following their open letter smearing parents across the country was simply a distraction. Once a totalitarian genie-like is out of the bottle, it’s not going back in without a fight.
The apology memo was sent the day after the Washington Free Beacon released internal emails revealing what appears to be the NSBA colluding with the Biden administration for weeks before delivering the letter to the White House . Viola Garcia , the president of the NSBA , and Chip Slaven, the CEO, had been “in talks over the last several weeks with White House staff” which requested “additional information,” and had been “engaged with the White House and the Education Department for several weeks,” about the issue, the Free Beacon reported.
We now know the “domestic terrorism” letter resulted from conversations between the NSBA and the Biden administration. This means the White House knew of this letter and its smearing of American moms and dads and approved its delivery to the Department of Justice , which acted within a week establishing a task force to save the nation from the newly minted Maniac Hate Criming Terrorist Parents.
Still, a big question remains: Who precisely at the White House solicited the NSBA to provide this letter? The American people have a right to know who developed such a nefarious goal as politically weaponizing federal law enforcement against the local political and social activities of American parents".. ...Tammy Bruce
Great question Tammy
Merrick Garland said, repeatedly , at this Congressional hearing that no parent would come under investigation for exercising their first amendment rights at school board meetings, and that investigation was reserved for threats of violence to school board members.
End of story.
He can say what he wants...they scared the shit out of parents.
This was a left wing project that went to the White House. They got a leftist school board organization to send a letter (now withdrawn with apology), the AG acted supposedly on that letter within 5 days. No matter how hard Senate Democrats try to pretend otherwise, Attorney General Merrick Garland’s improper assault on parents’ free-speech rights is undeniable.
There are videos of parents threatening school board members.
No one who wasnt threatening violence had any need to worry about getting investigated.
Not that the Constitution or Federal law seem to concern Merrick Garland, but even if that were true, the feds have no jurisdiction over local crime.
Garland's job is supposed to be to protect the First Amendment, not to threaten protected speech.
They were not cited by Garland or the DOJ lawyers.
No one who wasnt threatening violence had any need to worry about getting investigated.
They have a lot to fear. It is an intrusion by the federal government, which is under the control of the radical left. We saw what Justice means to them.
Everyone is getting it, even & especially those suburban moms who voted for Biden.
Republicans have been dealt a winning hand with this.
Anyone who threatens another person can be arrested and prosecuted but it's a job for local law enforcement it doesn't require a federal investigation. They were just trying to intimidate law abiding parents.