Liberals love to accuse conservatives of provoking violence with their rhetoric.
But on her MSNBC show on Saturday morning, MSNBC host Tiffany Cross not only described current political disagreements as a "war," but she exhorted her fellow liberals: "everybody needs to pick up a weapon and get involved."
"Pick up a weapon and get involved?" Imagine if a conservative politician or pundit had said that! There would be immediate calls for the offender to resign or be fired, and perhaps to be prosecuted on charges of inciting violence. Donald Trump was impeached over the January 6 riot without ever having said anything that explicit.
Cross had as a guest Democrat state representative Jasmine Crockett, who is running for Congress in a crowded field of Democrats trying to succeed retiring Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson in Dallas. Ironically, Cross led off by wondering "How do we as a country protect this democracy when these folks don't like the outcome of the next election," when Biden and the Democrats are now openly suggesting that they don't trust the outcome of the next election.
The MSNBC host warned that was "where they have partisan poll watchers, an open-carry state. It's a very fragile situation that we're in right now." That picture of armed election judges is inflammatory, and not accurate. A bill signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in September does not permit carrying guns in polling places.
Crockett declared that the struggle against Republicans for election integrity, etc., is a "war." Cross didn't merely agree, she upped the ante by a mile: "It is a war, it is indeed a war. And I have to say, they have won some battles, Jasmine, but we have to keep our eye on the war. And everybody needs to pick up a weapon and get involved because this is for the safety and lasting of the country."
These metaphors match Crockett's Twitter page, emblazoned with the words "PASSING THE TORCH. FUELING THE FIRE."
PS: As Mediaite noted approvingly, Cross then mocked Republicans as horror-movie serial killers. “We have to talk about Freddy vs. Jason, and that is, of course, DeSantis v. Trump in 2024. It is very frightening to see how obnoxious these two men compete with each other, and DeSantis is going out of his way to appeal, like, ‘No, I’m the bigger racist.'"
MSNBC host Tiffany Cross calling on her liberal allies to "pick up a weapon" was sponsored in part by Weather Tech and Walmart.
MSNBC
The Cross Connection
1/22/22
10:59 am ETTIFFANY CROSS: How do we as a country protect this democracy when these folks don't like the outcome of the next election, and Jasmine, you know, you're running for congress in Texas where this is a problem, where they have partisan poll watchers, an open-carry state. It's a very fragile situation that we're in right now.
What's your message to the people that you're running to represent? And what's your message to our viewers today?
JASMINE CROCKETT: Absolutely. First of all, it's great to be with all of you, it's great to see you, Tiffany. One of the things I think we're really not talking about, and I think you started to touch on it for a quick second, with the role that black women play in democracy.
So there's a bigger story that I think is brewing, and that is that black women have consistently fought for our democracy on every single level, whether it was in the streets, whether it was in the halls of capitols, whether they're state capitols or the US Capitol, or even as it relates to being able to prosecute.
And I think that black women will continue to fight for our democracy. And that's exactly what I plan to do. I don't plan to give up. I know that I wouldn't be here but for those that fought before me, so I'm going to continue this fight. We can't let up. If we say we've been defeated, then they have won. This is a war. This isn't a battle, and we absolutely will win this war.
CROSS: It is a war, it is indeed a war. And I have to say, they have won some battles, Jasmine, but we have to keep our eye on the war. And everybody needs to pick up a weapon and get involved because this is for the safety and lasting of the country.
