As more information comes out regarding the background of Jerad and Amanda Miller, who are responsible for the brutal murder of three persons in Las Vegas this past Sunday, it is becoming evident that the Millers were both radical and mainstream in their ideology.
The radical part is evidenced by the murder spree itself and by the Millers' infatuation with far-right sovereign citizen-type groups as well as their extreme pro-Second Amendement, pro-gun advocacy. Several diaries on this site have discussed this aspect of the Las Vegas tragedy over the last several days.
Little has been said, however, about just how mainstream conservatism influenced the couple and how these mainstream views were intertwined with their more radical outlook. In addition to leaving a swastika on the bodies of the police officers they had just killed, the Millers also left the yellow Gadsen “Don’t Tread on Me” flag of the Tea Party movement.
According to the New York Times, the “neighbors said Mr. Miller talked incessantly to anyone who would listen about the evils of welfare or President Obama.”
( link:
http://www.nytimes.com/... )
According to the Daily Beast, “their Facebook pages detail a descent into a murderous rage, railing against a tyrannical government and parroting talking points from fright-wing radio hosts such as Alex Jones and militia movement groups such as the Three Percenters while “liking” the pages of conservative activist groups ranging from the Heritage Foundation to FreedomWorks and the NRA.” ( link: http://www.thedailybeast.com/... )
Jerad Miller’s facebook page lists the following among his “likes” (my own explanatory notes are in italics below):
Sen. Rand Paul / Rand Paul 2016
Rep. Todd Rokita (current Indiana Republican Representative)
Rep. Allen West (former Florida Republican Representative and Tea Party “hero”)
Reclaim America (associated with Sen. Marco Rubio)
Andrew Napolitano for President (Napolitano is the senior judicial analyst for Fox News )
Operation “American Spring” set for May 16, 2014: Target Washington, D.C.
Heritage Foundation (top Republican /conservative think tank)
American Center for Law and Justice (conservative Christian legal advocacy group associated with Pat Robertson)
Alliance Defending Freedom (associated with James Dobson)
Conservative Daily
Townhall.com
American Crossroads (associated with Karl Rove)
Freedom Works (conservative lobbying group)
Generation Opportunity (Koch Brothers-funded front group for young people)
“Downsizing the Federal Government”
“I did NOT vote for Obama”
“I will NOT vote for Obama in 2012”
“Obama is the Worst President in US History”
“Stop Obama's Unconstitutional Appointments”
The above are all mainstream Republican and conservative persons, organizations, sites and ideas (there are many others; just go to the facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/...) and they all seem as much an inspiration to Jerad and Amanda Miller as any radical influences.
Perhaps there's a blurry line between what is now radical and what is mainstream within the Republican party and conservative movement in general -- as evidenced by tonight's defeat of House Majority Leader Cantor in the GOP primary in Virginia's 7th Congressional District by a rabidly anti-immigration Tea Party opponent. It does indeed appear that the lunatics are beginning to take over the asylum.
Nevertheless, the heinous acts perpetrated on Sunday weren't just all about the extreme militia movement and the Millers' spiral into anti-police, anti-government paranoia. The influence of mainstream Republican and conservative thought should not be discounted in the discussion of the Millers' murderous rampage.