Woman Receives Death Threats Days After Beck Targets Her On His Show

By Alex Seitz-Wald

The League of Women Voters has filed complaints with police in Evanston, IL and the FBI saying that one of their officials has been targeted by death threats relating to a candidatess debate she moderated last week. Kathy Tate-Bradish was a volunteer moderator at the October 21 debate in the state’s 8th District and sparked conservative outrage when she expressed what was perceived as “lukewarm” support for reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.

Just as the debate was about to begin, an audience member asked Tate-Bradish whether the pledge would be recited. When she “explained the pledge was not scheduled to begin the event, almost all in the crowd of more than 300 stood and enthusiastically recited it anyway.” Tate-Bradish recited the pledge as well, but told the crowd afterwards that the Pledge is not typically recited at candidate debates moderated by the League.

Within a few days, Tate-Bradish went from an unknown local League official to a right-wing villain, thanks to Fox News host Glenn Beck, who devoted a significant portion of his October 25 show to attacking her personally:

BECK: We wanted to look at the moderator, Kathy Tate-Bradish, from the League of Women Voters. Oh, she sounds so neutral and everything. I mean, she’s even neutral on the Pledge, apparently — just a typical woman voter trying to get the truth out. No, not so much — not so much.

She is on fire for Obama. She is a big-time Obama supporter. In fact, so much so, she’s part of his Organizing for America arm. Hmm. She’s even hosted campaign event in her home in 2007, part of her post on OFA’s, Organizing for America Web site, “Hope Action Change.”

Watch it:

The FBI told the Arlington Heights Daily Herald that Tate-Bradish’ complaint has been received and “is receiving due consideration.” League of Women Voters Illinois Executive Director Jan Czarnik, who filed the complaint, told the FBI that Tate-Bradish had been “turned into a cause celebre by Glenn Beck and Fox News.” Czarnik provided the FBI death threats posted on the Internet against Tate-Bradish, and “reported menacing posts on Fox News Channel’s Facebook page and Beck’s website, The Blaze.”

Joel Cheatwood, an executive who oversees Beck’s show, issued a statement yesterday saying, “We’re not going to comment on something that’s hypothetical as we have not heard about this complaint.”

For more on right-wing violence, see yesterday’s Progress Report.

Update Mary Schaafsma, the issues and advocacy coordinator for the Illinois League, told ThinkProgress this afternoon that the only reason Tate-Bradish resisted reciting the Pledge was because it had not been included in the debate format, which the candidates had agreed to ahead of time, noting that the League has been doing candiate forums and debates like the one Beck highlighted "for decades." She also said that following the threats, the League locked the doors to its Chicago offices for several days and alerted the building management of the possible threat. “I’ve been working in politics and nonprofits for a long long time and I never seen this level and pitch of vitriol,” she said. Important M.C.L Comment: If you're a progressive are really going to let Glenn Beck and his merry band of special ed reject followers to win? Honestly if you're a supporter or claiming to be a former supporter of President Obama what the hell has this man done to that would make you sit at home and let some borderline insane tea party to win? While I'm with you on the public option, I'm with you on overturning DADT and DOMA and I'm with you on tougher Wall Street reformer but if these nuts win you can forget all that. All these bastards will do from next year to the next election is block everything, President Obama could make Fridays free pop and pizza night and these freaks will filibuster it, President Obama could make Saturday night free movie night in the country and that glaze eye twit Michele Bachmann will be on Sean Hannity screaming how bad that is. Not only will these dick weeds will block anything in hopes the country move farther in despair they will hold countless investigation on the Obama White House, so all you 99ers thinking about making the Democrats pay by staying at home you can forget any extension of your benefits because punks like Darrell Issa will be more interest in what President Obama did between the years of 1990 to 2007. While regular Americans suffer because the Republicans want to crashed the country to improve the chances of Queen of the Stupid Sarah Palin when she "decides" to run for president in late 2011, the corporate interest that brought and paid for these tea party Republican scumbags that will be serving as representatives and senators will experience pressure from their corporate sugar daddies and with that pressure you're going to see things pass that would make the Robber Baron era look like the 1990s. You may justify your decision to stay home on election night by saying "Well Johnny C. once people see how crappy Sharron Angle is, they will vote her out the next time around". My response to your comment will be dude no thanks to the Citizens United ruling Sharron Angle if she does the corporate bidding will be saved by them. Sharron Angle's challenger heaven forbid if she wins, could be the second coming of Teddy or Franklin Roosevelt and they will get beaten by her for the simple fact her corporate sponsors could swap her challenger with attack ads, she can avoid debates because the ads are taking a toll on her Democratic challenger and she can only speak to friendly media outlets and whatever message she wants to put out the ads and Fox News will give it to her. We gotta show up and vote or that MoveOn.Org online ad will be a reality.