Go back and read Spencer's post about this story on Monday, which encapsulates the first round of outrage. The second round came from the Left, citing news reports that local police had not obtained evidence of any political motive in the act of violence. People began accusing Sen. Marco Rubio of lying or perpetrating a hoax, citing a 'no evidence' line from the police. They also pointed to reports that the victim has been associated with racist groups, but appears to have left them, expressing regret for some of his past bigotry (regardless, criminal physical violence was totally unjustified here, regardless of the identity of the target). I recommended waiting for more information, but also noted that it was not a big stretch to suggest that a GOP volunteer wearing Republican campaign apparel (Rubio shirt, DeSantis hat) getting savagely attacked right before an election might have had something to do with politics.
Seems reasonable, no?
Let’s wait for a full picture to emerge. But a man in GOP swag was savagely attacked while canvassing for R’s. A political motive is surely plausible here. I’m reminded of the FBI denying for months any political motive in the obviously political congressional baseball shooting. https://t.co/ZEBwQzfkct
— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) October 24, 2022
In the face of bad-faith pushback against that tweet, I noted that 'no evidence' isn't a permanent framing by authorities -- some of whom have indeed been bizarrely hesitant in recent memory to label obvious political violence as such, even in the face of overwhelming evidence, or even an explicit confession. I wasn't accusing anyone of lying here; I just didn't view the asserted lack of evidence at that point to be determinative. And yes, some law enforcement officials have been slippery-to-evasive, or deliberately obtuse, on such things in recent memory. In short, I argued, let's wait for more facts -- but a political angle was hardly out of the question. On Wednesday, Rubio provided more facts:
On Sunday thugs told a GOP canvasser wearing my campaign t-shirt that he couldn’t be in their neighborhood because he was a Republican
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 26, 2022
They assaulted him & commanded two dogs to attack him
Surveillance video corroborated the victim’s story & police have now made a second arrest pic.twitter.com/pGT6W0aFn8
Local media spent 2 days treating the GOP canvasser who was attacked as a criminal & denying the attack was politically motivated
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 26, 2022
Now a second arrest,a police report & surveillance video shows how biased & irresponsible the narrative they were pushing was pic.twitter.com/VdpyXQhrgV
A second arrest, and a police report featuring an allegation from the victim -- who, again, was canvassing for Republicans and wearing GOP swag at the time -- that the primary perpetrator was motivated by politics: "The defendant...stated to [the victim] that he could not pass through because he was a Republican, and that the dogs were ready to attack," according to police documents. The ensuing assault was so severe that it sent the victim to the hospital with a "fractured orbital bone" and "nasal/sinus fractures." The primary defendant reportedly also commanded his two German shepherds to "attack and bite" the Rubio/DeSantis canvasser amid the attack, which is obviously extremely dangerous. Perhaps the victim is lying about the motive, but (to borrow a phrase), there's no evidence that he is. I'll leave you with this observation from Rubio, on media standards:
When a republican volunteer is savagely beaten the traditional media treats the victim as the criminal and the criminal as a nice young man who likes fishing & just made a mistake
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 25, 2022
https://t.co/n9rVlYVmgl
In case you missed it earlier, a new Sunshine State poll shows Rubio leading in his re-election race by double digits, with other polling showing a smaller but sizable lead.
