This post includes a graphic picture. It is included here not for shock value, but to show just how heinous some people can be.
Last night, I got the most chilling phone call I have ever received. It was Jake Burris, Ken Aden’s campaign manager. Last night, Jake and his four kids had come back to their Russellville home. As they were getting out of the car, one of his children discovered their family cat dead on the front porch. One side of the animal’s head had been bashed in and an eyeball was hanging out of its socket. But there was something even more horrifying to be found on the corpse.
Written across the animal’s fur in black marker was the word “LIBERAL“.
This is terrorism. There’s no other word for it. A police report has been filed. Jake said the kids seem to be handling it okay. The one that discovered the cat was too young to be able to read and Jake had quickly gotten the others into the house before they saw it. Pope County is an insanely conservative area and the Aden campaign has been shaking things up even there and it looks like another right wing sociopath with a taste for violence has come crawling out of the woodwork in response. I asked Aden for a comment on the record:
“This is sickening. To kill a child’s pet…I’m at a loss for words…I’ve seen the best and the worst of humanity, but this is something else.”
Both Ken and Jake though made it clear that they weren’t going to back down on the campaign trail, both agreeing that caving to this kind of behavior would only make things worse.
“I’ve got a gun and I know how to use it.”, Jake said. “If I have to protect my kids I’ll do it without hesitation.”
This happened the same night that Gabby Giffords, the survivor of a heinous act of violence, announced she was resigning from Congress. To think of something happening here like what happened in Arizona, the possibility of that happening to Ken or to someone on his campaign team, is frightening beyond belief. This is how serial killers start off after all, torturing and killing animals. Someone who would do this to a cat is not to far from doing it to a person.
There’s no doubting this was political. There’s no doubting it’s another hideous example of right wing terrorism. Personally I would hope that leaders on the right-Steve Womack, the Arkansas Republican Party, etc.-would step up and condemn this as strongly as possible. I would also hope that Steve Womack’s father, owner of a local radio station, would stop giving out the names, phone numbers, and addresses of members of the Aden team or anyone else for that matter on his radio program when ranting about Aden. The elder Womack has done that several times and Aden’s former press secretary got a death threat in the mail soon after her name was mentioned on the program. Clearly there is someone out there that doesn’t need anymore of that kind of information, much less inspiration to act on their hatred. I also hope that the Aden campaign will do whatever they can to up the security at some of their events, for the time being at least. Aden has said he’s going to put out a press release on the matter soon, and we’ll be following this and any developments related to it closely.
That said, our thoughts and prayers are with the Burris family. Jake Burris is a great guy, and he and his kids shouldn’t have to be dealing with this.
Update: I have been trying to update the blog on this for awhile now but the insane amount of traffic this is getting had crashed the site. This is now national news and it’s getting picked up seemingly everywhere. Our analytics on this today are off the charts, dwarfing every story that came before it in a big way. This is huge stuff, but part of me is a little miffed that the press couldn’t pay half as much attention to the good stuff Ken has done-the toy drive for foster kids, the resume building workshop, the stellar campaign in general. But what’s the saying? If it bleeds it leads? Anyway, Womack’s campaign manager Beau Walker put out a strong statement on this today, to their credit and Aden put out a press release dealing with the facts of the matter and stuck up for Womack and his campaign against the finger pointing. Both statements follow:
KEN ADEN NEWS RELEASE
RUSSELLVILLE—On the heels of a weekend of positive news coverage for the campaign of Democratic Congressional candidate Ken Aden, Aden’s campaign manager returned home to find his family pet slaughtered, with the word “liberal” painted on the animal’s corpse.
The Russellville Police Department is investigating, and a report will be made to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Monday morning.Jacob Burris, who has served as Aden’s campaign manager since late October, arrived home with his family Sunday evening, and his four children discovered the gruesome scene as they exited the family vehicle to enter their home.
The family pet, an adult, mixed-breed Siamese cat, had one side of its head bashed in to the point the cat’s eyeball was barely hanging from its socket. The perpetrators scrawled “liberal” across the cat’s body and left it on the doorstep of Burris’ house.
“To kill a child’s pet is just unconscionable,” Aden said Monday morning. “As a former combat soldier, I’ve seen the best of humanity and the worst of humanity. Whoever did this is definitely part of the worst of humanity,” he said.
“It is one thing to engage in civil political discourse, and for Republicans and Democrats to disagree with each other, which is an expected part of the political process. Taking it to this level is beyond unacceptable,” Aden said.
While the campaign between Aden and incumbent Congressman Steve Womack has heated up in recent months, Aden said they did not believe the Womack campaign to be responsible. “Although we have certainly disagreed and engaged in a great deal of civil discourse, I do not believe in any way that Congressman Womack or his campaign had anything to do with this incident,” Aden said. He noted that, before Christmas, KRUM Radio, a station owned by Womack’s father, actually promoted a toy drive held by Aden’s campaign for children in the Third District. “We suspect this is the action of a rogue individual or group of individuals who are the type of folks that stoop to the lowest common denominator instead of engaging in civil political discourse,” Aden said. “It is unfortunate this has occurred, and we will await the results of the police and federal investigations,” Aden said.
WOMACK CAMPAIGN STATEMENT
The thought of brutalizing any animal to make a political statement, no matter what that statement is, is beyond any standard of decency,” he told The Huffington Post. “The person or people, if there was more than one, who are responsible — they definitely need to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. There should be no tolerance in our political discussion here in this nation for this kind of behavior.”
It makes you wonder what would have happened if the family had been at home when the attackers struck. Everyone involved with the campaign needs to be vigilant and prepared. I hate to type this, but it’s the truth: It will only get worse. Unless these people are caught, they will continue. I hope the police catch them quickly.
Is there any real evidence that Kermit Womack has given out the names and numbers of Aden’s campaign staff on his radio show? Is there any record of this or is this an accusation by a nameless blogger?
This story is utterly disgusting, yet I’m compelled to point out that a dead animal is referred to as a “carcass”, while a dead human is referred to as a “corpse”.
Thank You nonetheless for bringing this story to the fore.
My reference information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body
yes Bailey (if that is your name) the evidence is that both my wife and i heard it on the radio…they gave out my name,address and even spelled my name w an admonition to ‘watch my back’…this has also happened to other people who write letters critical of womack by his father on the air..with the same phrase ‘watch your back’ being used…if thats not enough to convince you that something odd is going on…oh well!
This makes me ill. Slaughtering a family’s pet because of political differences? The person who did this is just put themselves into the service of evil.
I dropped some money in Ken Aden’s ActBlue account hoping that it will bring some comfort to the Burris family that everyone around the country cares and we’re so sorry for the hurt they’ve endured.
Has a complaint been filed with the FCC regarding the Radio Rhwanda actions of KURM AM-790 and ‘Daddy’ Womack?
I’ve also added the incident to the Right Wing Violence database and map: https://www.google.com/fusiontables/DataSource?snapid=S369214ja3x
Looks like the story has made ThinkProgress and Buzzfeed:
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/01/23/409443/arkansas-democratic-campaign-manager-comes-home-to-find-childs-cat-murdered-liberal-written-on-dead-body/
http://www.buzzfeed.com/provincialelitist/democratic-campaign-managers-cat-murdered
Hopefully all this attention blows up in the face of the moron who attempted this sickening intimidation.
Is there any other coverage of KURM AM-790 reading addresses on the air?
Amazing how this event has been uniformly editorialized. Oh, wait, no it isn’t.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_flag
yes mike,i talked at length w the FCC today concerning this. i filed a complaint today. kurm-am license is up in a
month,btw..if you want evidence of the crap that goes on there,just listen at http://www.kurm.net at around 10am central..replay at night around 10pm…
Found this story on Current’s website. Word of this act of electoral terrorism is spreading. Regrettably I think we will be seeing more of this type of intimidation over the coming year.
I for one would like to reclaim the word Liberal. If the right wingnuts want to turn it into an epithet, so be it, but too many progressives have shrunk from the word and allowed it to be hijacked. I’m a proud Liberal from the purple Commonwealth of VA. My condolences to the Burris family. I hope it ends with this.
I live in the northeast. After reading this, seeing this picture…my God! I hope the authorities make an e,ample of this murderer when he/she/ they is/are found. To kill a living thing for the sake of intimidation and political gain is dispicable. This poor animal! Those poor children!!!
I can’t imagine why people would be angry at liberals, especially in a place like Arkansas — home of Bill Clinton, who was soooo good at standing up to corporate American. Surely the people must be grateful for NAFTA, Welfare Reform, etc.
To ozark60.. This breaks my heart so much! How horrible as well that this Womack man gives out such personal information on the radio that can endanger someone with all the crazies these days. This world isn’t so kind anymore. My condolances to the Aden family. Losing a family pet is no different than losing any family member to me anyway.I pray he runs free over the Rainbow Bridge, and his killers are caught ASAP! I’m from VA but signed up to leave my sincere condolances, especially for the children. NOTHING should come to this, ever. It’s dispicable! Rest in peace sweet kitty and a hug to the children. Politics are too darn nasty anymore. WHAT is wrong with people? Are politics REALLY worth THIS? I think NOT!
In all seriousness, the scum that did this deserve to be shot dead and their parents billed for the cost of the ammunition.
Apropos of nothing in particular I have carried a Colt Officers .45 daily for the past thirty years. And would have NO compunction whatsoever in putting anyone who did that it my presence in the cold cold ground.
as a cat lover i am so saddened by this. as a liberal, i want these republican candidates and their mouth foaming cat butchering followers to stop the civil war they are trying to wage. what did the cat do to deserve this?
they better have a really good CSI team doing forensics on this. i want this person thrown in prison. i don’t want this to go away. this is what happens. people say… it’s just a cat. no, it is a living breathing soul.
my cats are angry too.
@Wolf – If I carried a gun (I don’t) and I saw someone doing this to an animal, I would shoot first and not bother asking any questions.
GUMMO Republicans.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gummo
The people in this movie grew up and moved to Arkansas and became Republican.
@Lemel
That’s genius, man. You bring in some hare-brained interpretations of issues for the wacko sadist/s scanning the virtual scene of the crime, so maybe they recognize the supposed basis and maybe justification for their butchery. Well there isn’t any!
And you even muff your attempt. Here’s your quote:
“I can’t imagine why people would be angry at liberals, especially in a place like Arkansas — home of Bill Clinton, who was soooo good at standing up to corporate American. Surely the people must be grateful for NAFTA, Welfare Reform, etc.”
Standing up to corporate America?! Corporate America, along with buying, selling and delivering NAFTA, also happens to be bankrolling the Tea Party and every Republican candidate running for office. Bill Clinton and liberals are the least of your worries if you think NAFTA and corporate America are important. And they are.
I don’t know where you’re going with Welfare Reform here, so I can’t answer. You get a bye on that one.
PLEDGING $100.00 FOR ARREST AND CONVICTION of Person or persons that comitted this TERRORIST Hate Crime. I am really surprised no one else has done so. OH and I PLEDGE $100 to the Campaign of Arkansas Democratic congressional candidate Ken Aden . IF GOP supporters don’t MATCH THE REWARD Pledge, we can trust they SUPPORT Terrorism and Hate Crimes. AND I will spread this to as many fellow Cat Lovers that I can! ATTN Jake Burris Please EXPECT other pledges for REWARD and arrange for receipt. Thank you, My deepest sympathies.
Lemel, children are missing their pet. Bill Clinton is not involved. Cruelty is, and that cruelty was initiated by a Republican which I assume you are. Unless you are just a troll, you would serve your party far better by apologizing for the killer who is plainly a nut case. Unless you, yourself, are said nut case.
As a human being and a animal appreciator, I am saddened by this disgusting act.
I am heartened by the many other humans posting here who say they would shoot the person who did this. I would have to get a gun first, but I would shoot them too.
@barnstorm
There’s nothing “hare-brained” about what I wrote. Perhaps I need to state the point in simpler terms for you:
There is much justified hatred for the liberal establishment in America, because they have sold out the working class.
That doesn’t **excuse** animal cruelty, but it does **explain** why reactions of this sort will occur. Bottled-up rage will eventually be expressed in many forms.
“Corporate America … also happens to be bankrolling the Tea Party …”
Irrelevant. That sort of talking point is straight from the “lesser-of-two-evils” playbook by which the Democratic Party has been operating for decades.
“Bill Clinton and liberals are the least of your worries …”
On the contrary, liberal politicians put a happy face on the same rearrangement of the deck chairs. With Republicans in office, you know you’re going to get screwed. Democrats do the same thing, but they put a “do-gooder” gloss on it — like lipstick on a skunk.
And totally unexpectedly, limitless press and a national drive to raise money for the challenger in a vulnerable Congressional district in a year where 25 seats could flip the House. The comments here reflect that most reflexive of progressive epithets: Reactionary.
Of course dumb hicks would kill an animal. Those Ozark barbarians are barely kept in check by the meager garrison of studied intellectuals that haunt Blue Arkansas.
Whereas sacrificing one cat on the alter of progressivism is so obviously impossible it receives no consideration at all. You’ve all got rings in your noses. Even you carpet bagging sympathy trolls.
Ok, Zinoviev, we get it. You’re cool.
I also hope that yesterday’s “detainment” of Rand Paul strikes a chord with you as well of something that is not what it seems. That tool should’ve let TSA pat his sack a little like the rest of us instead of slapping his constituents across the face as if one phone call doesn’t get him out of what “detainment” he was in.
@Vlaatar
Haha! That’s exactly what I thought. If that isn’t a sad publicity stunt to drum up attention for daddy’s fledgling campaign!
Im a Ron Paul supporter from CA and this makes me sick, i will gladly contribute to Ken Aden’s campaign for this…. hopefully the scumbastard that did this will be caught (or at least get whats coming to him/her). Im a not some animal rights activist either, im a hunter… but killing someones pet is really a chicken$#!t thing to do, and this really made me mad. The people that did this should be ashamed of themselves.
This is disgusting! I am not a liberal, but would never show my difference in opinion or belief system through the killing/torture of an innocent animal or the hurting of another person/child (a five-year old’s cat in this case!). Why do people act out this way? And this is supposed to make us root for “his”,the offenders, team? Come on people, wise up, be kind and lets make the world a better and gentler place for our children and animals. I am a veterinarian and this story absolutely saddens me to the core. It is depressing to know that some humans can stoop so low. What if someone did this kind of thing to a member of his family, just because they they shared different views than he? Doesn’t it make you feel better to comfort an animal or child rather than spread hate and violence? Would this person prefer a world filled with hate, hurt and violence rather than differences in opinion, that can be discussed and pondered in an adult and civilized way? Wow, I am ashamed to be of the same species as this ignorant monster! This person needs to seek mental health help, and soon. Please turn in any information regarding this incident.
You are a kind and intelligent person, FITNIF, the complete opposite of the vile scum that perpetrated this heinous crime! I’ve never liked the word liberal, it doesn’t desribe many of us democrats. I also am pro-life,an environmentalist and care deeply for creation and all the life in it. I have a son who is a republican senator,so you see differing opinions can coexist just fine if everyone would just respect each other. I really feel that the murderer or murders of this sweet innocent soul will surely rot in hell b/c they are truly evil. And I agree w/ morgansher and taytaysgram. May the soul of this sweet kitty cross over the Rainbow Bridge and someday be reunited w/ her family. Godspeed, precious kitty and my deep condolenses to Jake Burris and his family!!!!