[guest post by Dana]
Yet again, it’s different when Democrats target private citizens:
Sad to see so many San Antonians as 2019 maximum donors to Donald Trump — the owner of @BillMillerBarBQ, owner of the @HistoricPearl, realtor Phyllis Browning, etc.
Their contributions are fueling a campaign of hate that labels Hispanic immigrants as ‘invaders.’
The tweet is followed by a list of retirees, and the names of their businesses, who have contributed the maximum amount to the Trump campaign. I’m not going to publish the list here. These are private citizens, not political opponent(s). Yet now, a sitting member of the House of Representatives has made their names public, thereby putting them at risk of harassment, or worse. His campaign has literally invited upon them. How can this be acceptable to anyone from either side of the aisle? While donor information is public – one can do the research themselves and find the names – the fact that an elected official is responsible for this is reprehensible. And it’s just really staggering that this is happening only a few days after a horrific mass shooting left 22 people dead in Castro’s home state of Texas. How incredibly tone-deaf, cynical and vicious does one have to be to make the decision to go with this? There is absolutely no excuse. What a disgrace Joaquin Castro is. He brings shame to himself, his party, and his district (especially if some of the individuals live in his district). We can only hope that no harm comes to anyone on the list.
Interestingly, Joaquin Castro retweeted these remarks from his brother, Julian, made after the El Paso massacre:
“That is no accident. That is due in part to the climate this president has set, of division, of otherness.”
Good to know no one else but Trump can add fuel to the ugly fires of division and otherness. No accidents, indeed.
P.S. So far, not a peep from Big Media about this. But, hey, you know…
UPDATE: Joaquin Castro was confronted on Twitter by the Trump re-election campaign’s director of comms, Tim Murtaugh, who said:
At the very least @Castro4Congress is inviting harassment of these private citizens. At worst, he’s encouraging violence.
Will media concerned about “rhetoric” care about this?
He’s listing people and their employers.
This is a target list.
Castro attempted to justify his targeting of private citizens:
First, the Indivisble@group’s graphic I shared doesn’t have private or personal info — no addresses or phone #, etc. It’s publicly reported info printed in newspapers routinely from the @nyt to the @dcexaminer. You know that. 1/
2nd, what I said is true — your campaign has stoked fear of brown-skinned immigrants. Those contributions hv been used to pay for over 2K @Facebook ads declaring an invasion by Hispanics.
That is truly dangerous for millions.
Will you commit not to run another ad like that? 2/2
It’s not only a target list, it’s a direct shot across the bow to warn Trump donors. Ths is an elected official brazenly intimidating private citizens.
–Dana