Dakota Beacon

Many of us were both shocked and deeply disappointed in North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer's response to a call on the Jared Thomas Show (KNOX radio, Grand Forks). In that answer he libeled a 14-year U.S. Air Force veteran, Ashli Babbitt “criminal” and expressed his gratitude to the killer.

It seemed quite a 180 degree spin for someone who launched his career by running as a “conservative” who cared about the Constitution and some called him out for this – as well they should. What would possess a member of the U.S. Senate, who claimed no personal knowledge of the incident, to jump in and call one person a “criminal” - basically vermin – and then saying “thanks” to the person who shot her, refusing to name him? A U.S. Senator, especially one pretending to be a “conservative” or a “constitutionalist” really should know all about the Bill of Rights. The Babbitt incident violated at least the 5^th, 6^th and 8^th Amendments. In the United States of America one has the presumption of innocence. The 5^th Amendment guarantees “due process of law”, the 6^th sets for the right to a speedy trial by an impartial jury of peers and all that goes with it – the right to bring in witnesses, to face the accuser, etc., and the 8^th, of course, is there to prevent cruel and unusual punishment.

At worst, Babbitt stepped through a window that had already been broken into a public building. But it was not quite what it was portrayed by the main stream media that Cramer (if we give him the benefit of doubt) uses to inform himself before charging a U.S. Military veteran with criminal conduct out of hand. Video recently released now shows that Babbitt, far from being an “insurrectionist” or leading in acts of vandalism, was trying desperately to deter others from doing so. Not only was she not instigating an “attack” on the U.S. Capitol, she was physically attempting to stop one.

Cramer further embroidered his false charges by lying. He claimed that the shooter had issued a warning. Obviously he did not. Nor, for that matter, did he do anything else we expect from an officer of the law. He did not speak at all before he shot. He hid in the shadow of a doorway rather than show himself and thus warn people that he was armed and would shoot. Instead of coming out after he killed her to manage the scene, he retreated, receding into the bowels of the Capitol Building, leaving the victim, Ashli Babbitt, to bleed out in the corridor. Some hero. Then it turns out that this hero, Michael Byrd, was not completely unknown to the press. He was supposed to have been on duty protecting Congressman Steve Scalise, in 2017, when he was shot and nearly killed. He was a hero there, too, presumably. Then he was also known for having left his loaded gun in a Capitol Building restroom. Nothing ever came of that. Pundit Salty Cracker has implied a sinister reason – that he was saved for a future “favor” and there is more reason to believe this than Cramer had for alleging that Ashli Babbitt was a “criminal”. I mean, if we are going to throw libels around let's not restrict it to only our military veterans who have served for a decade and a half.

Cramer should have known, as do the rest of us, that if you don't have the facts (and he claimed he did not even know the name of the killer) you don't make wild charges and impugn the name of a person who was never charged and is not alive to defend herself or her own good name.  Shame on him.

Following his shameful abuse of the late Ashli Babbitt and his honoring of her cold-blooded killer, he had the crust to accept a post as the Ranking Member on the Armed Services Committee. He also runs around on Veterans Day, proclaiming his “gratitude” and his support for our veterans and our military. What a jerk.

It is now time for a genuine apology by Mr. Cramer for his out-of-line comments regarding Ashli Babbitt. He must apologize – and it really ought to be in writing on some of his fancy stationery – both to the family of this veteran and to his own constituency for his abject abandonment of our most precious rights under the Constitution – the right to due process of law and all that attends that. I hope he will use his little monthly newsletter he set up to promote himself and his good works for this. I hope he will come on the Jared Thomas Show again and publicly apologize to listeners, apologize to North Dakota for having so disgustingly misrepresented the people of that state, to the people of America whom he supposedly serves. I doubt he will do this. Cowards like Cramer don't usually own up to their mistakes – if it was a mistake and not a calculated political move, seeing as how Trump was not coming through after all.

I believe that Babbitt and others in Washington that week were very ill-served by Trump – no question about that. Those rotting in prison as well as those who died that day, either by a bullet, like Babbitt, or by police brutally beating them to death, have been pretty much ignored by our golfing, country-clubbing excuse for an ex-president. He could care less about any of the suckers who supported him so devotedly that day, January 6. From what we hear, Babbitt was the lucky one. The prisoners have yet to be charged. Their constitutional rights appear to be of no consequence to either Trump or the members – Republican or Democrat – of either the Senate or the House. They have been abandoned and largely forgotten. Trump called them out to rally for him, show him support, but it was always a one-way street. That's the Trump way.

Now we know for a fact what the Cramer way is. It seems that the state of North Dakota would do itself a favor by primarying this creep and trying someone else – maybe this time look longer and harder for a candidate who actually does honor the Constitution. I have a special chagrin for the disgusting behavior of Senator Cramer – I remember very well the circumstances of his nomination for Congress. I wish it were not so. We do our best, we rely on the words – empty, as it turned out – of the people who seek our support. When we are betrayed – and make no mistake, we were betrayed by Cramer – we must withdraw that support and let the next guy know that it is conditional upon his fulfilling his obligation to upholding the document which is intended to make us a free people. No one should feel free to violate that while holding office at the sufferance of the people of North Dakota.

Well, Kevin? Are we going to hear from you now?

Comments:  (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) (RE: Dakota Beacon)

Wonderful article Sally. Yes, Cramer needs to go.  --MR