Left wing SPLC blamed for climate of hate that led to shooting

The radical leftist group Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has partnered with the Department of Homeland Security in a 'Working Group' called Countering violent Extremism to paint conservatives as hate groups and extremists. The Southern Poverty Law Center, also known as The Church of Morris Dees has recently labeled the Family Research Council, American Family Association, Concerned Women for America, the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission, Coral Ridge Ministries, Family Research Institute, Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, Illinois Family Institute, Liberty Counsel, MassResistance, National Organization for Marriage and the Traditional Values Coalition as 'hate groups'. Former Attorney General Edwin Meese says it is "despicable" for the Southern Poverty Law Center to classify the Family Research Council and a dozen other top conservative organizations as "hate groups" similar to the Ku Klux Klan. The SPLC has a history of targeting conservatives and conservative groups as racist, homophobic, or extremist if they disagree with the radical left positions of the SPLC on any number of issues. An article at Discover the Networks.org says "What makes the Southern Poverty Law Center particularly odious is its habit of taking legitimate conservatives and jumbling them with genuine hate groups (the Klan, Aryan Nation, skinheads, etc.), to make it appear that there's a logical relationship between say opposing affirmative action and lynching, or demands for an end to government services for illegal aliens and attacks on dark-skinned immigrants. The late novelist/philosopher Ayn Rand called this "the broad-brush smear."" The SPLC has made a fortune exploiting the victims of bias crimes. "Together, SPLC's three top executives -- all white — took home just shy of three-quarters of a million dollars in 2005." Morris Seligman Dees, the founder and chief trial lawyer of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has contributed money to the campaigns of a number of political candidates, all of them Democrats and Independents. Among the more notable recipients of his funding were John Edwards, John Kerry, Ralph Nader, Bill Clinton, Tom Harkin, Julian Bond, Ted Kennedy, and Jimmy Carter according to his profile at Discover the Networks.org. The SPLC has joined the Department of Homeland Security in a 'Working Group' called Countering violent Extremism. John Cohen, President and CEO of SPLC is listed as a member and Laurie Wood, Analyst, Southern Poverty Law Center/Instructor, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center is listed as an 'expert in subject matter'. The members of the group also include three from Muslim organizations but we don't see any conservatives. (see the list at the end of the report) The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) which has been determined by the courts to be a terrorist support group proudly points out on their Facebook page that its Michigan members 'participated a Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) Working Group meeting with law enforcement officials and community advocates in Dearborn, Mich.'[ibid]. So we have the Southern Poverty Law Center, also known as The Church of Morris Dees, which calls groups and individuals like the Family Research Council, Eagle Forum, the Heritage Foundation, Rush Limbaugh, Lou Dobbs, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), Rep. Steve King (R-IA), and Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) 'right wing extremists' and the Council on American-Islamic Relations which the FBI has proven to be linked to a terrorist organization teaming up with the US Department of Homeland Security to determine what groups in America should be categorized as 'extremist' and potentially violent. Now you can see why the DHS came out with its Rightwing Extremism report in April of 2009 that warned of potential violence by people against illegal immigration and gun control, and returning military veterans. Now that's change. Follow Michael Whipple on Twitter @1stStarfighter Follow @usACTIONnews on Twitter or on Facebook