Rep. Adam Kinzinger shares 'hateful, vitriolic' messages he received following Alexandria shooting
"We must rise above the angry rhetoric,"
— -- Illinois Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger shared on Tuesday a few of the "hateful, vitriolic" messages he received following the June 14 congressional baseball practice shooting at a Virginia park, that left his GOP colleague Rep. Steve Scalise in critical condition.
The House Majority Whip's condition has since been upgraded to serious.
Kinzinger, who serves Illinois' 16th Congressional District, posted on Facebook some messages he said he received from the public, writing, "We must rise above the angry rhetoric coming from all sides. Below are just a few of the hateful, vitriolic messages I received AFTER the #AlexandriaShooting. I know this is not the worst of it, and that I’ll get even more comments on this post itself, but it’s shocking and disturbing nonetheless."
Some messages he shared unabashedly embraced violence, while others were a bit tamer.
One tweet, making reference to the shooting taking place at a baseball diamond, reads, "@RepKinzinger Too bad you weren't on second base!!"
Another tweet reads, "GOP IS NASTY VIOLENT PARTY; YOU DESERVE TO SUFFER & DIE!"
"You and GOP responsible for vile/violent actions since you are not working for the people," reads one of the tamer tweets Kinzinger posted.
Another message reads, "I hate you. I want to vote you out of office. That doesn't make me bad. It makes me quite smart."
"For the sake of our democracy, for the sake of future generations watching, listening, and reading these comments, we must do better to restore our civility," writes Kinzinger, who was first elected to Congress in 2010, adding that he is also looking inward, as well. "As I said last week, that includes me -– I am committed to changing my tone and will encourage others in debate to disagree without being disagreeable. It’s time to #RestoreCivility."
Following the shooting in Alexandria by gunman James Hodgkinson, 66, of Belleville, Illinois -- who was killed in a shootout with police -- Kinzinger said in a statement, "What happened today was a targeted act of senseless violence from a disturbed individual. This hate will not divide us; it will unite us."
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