In a world where political tensions are at their zenith, where every headline seems to shout divisiveness louder than the last, we face a reality many thought confined to the annals of dark historical tales: an assassination attempt on a U.S. president.

We are not recounting tales of old.

No, this is today’s America.

And the audacious attempt on former President Donald Trump’s life should send shivers down the spine of every law-abiding citizen.

Now, you might’ve heard the Democrats constantly crying wolf about ‘violent extremists’ on the right.

But where’s the outcry, the unified condemnation, when a radical individual from their side of the fence takes things to this heinous level?

A woman, with a deadly cocktail of ricin in one hand and a self-proclaimed “FREE REBEL SPIRIT” in the other, sought to bring an end to Trump’s life.

This isn’t a scene from some dystopian thriller; it happened, and not in some distant corner of the world, but right here in our own backyard.

Pascale Cecile Veronique Ferrier, the woman behind this assassination attempt, didn’t just happen upon this plot on a whim.

She calculated, concocted, and even promised more violence should her initial plan fail.

And for all her high intellect and accomplishments as touted by her defense, this mastermind of malevolence was thankfully apprehended before her sinister plot could see the light of day.

But it raises the pressing question: how close did we come?

The grim shadow of that ‘what if’ looms over us.

The ricin-filled letter was caught, yes, but only just. And while Ferrier’s vile attempt was thwarted, it’s a stark reminder that in our hyper-partisan world, all it takes is one.

One unchecked, deranged individual who believes their act of violence is justified.

So, let’s reflect for a moment.

Before we’re so quick to cast stones and label one side as the sole culprits of violence, let’s remember that hatred and extremism know no party lines.

Today, it was Trump.

Tomorrow, who knows?

It’s time to rise above the division, condemn violence in all its forms, and remember that an attack on one of us, regardless of political leaning, is an attack on all of us.

Fox News has more details:

A Canadian woman who mailed a threatening letter containing a poisonous substance to former President Donald Trump while he was serving in the White House was sentenced to over two decades in prison on Thursday.

Pascale Cecile Veronique Ferrier, a 56-year-old dual citizen of Canada and France, was sentenced to 262 months, nearly 22 years, behind bars in Washington, D.C., for mailing a letter containing the poison ricin in 2020 to then-President Trump and others. She pleaded guilty in January to violating biological weapons prohibitions.

In the letter, Ferrier referred to Trump as “The Ugly Tyrant Clown” and laced it with the potentially deadly ricin, saying, “If it doesn’t work, I’ll find better recipe for another poison, or I might use my gun when I’ll be able to come. Enjoy! FREE REBEL SPIRIT.”

Ferrier was ultimately arrested trying to drive across the U.S.-Canada border at the Peace Bridge Border Crossing in Buffalo, New York, while carrying a gun, a knife and hundreds of rounds of ammunition, authorities said. The letter was intercepted at a mail sorting facility in September 2020, before it could reach the White House.

In court, Ferrier’s defense attorney Eugene Ohm said the “inordinately intelligent” French immigrant had no previous criminal record prior. He also highlighted that she had earned a master’s degree in engineering and raised two children as a single parent.

The judge ultimately sided with prosecutors, who argued that Ferrier made the ricin at home in Quebec and mailed the potentially deadly poison to Trump and to several police officials in Texas.

Amid the hustle and bustle of the 24/7 news cycle, one would think that a chilling assassination attempt against a former U.S. president would be the lead story on every major media outlet.

But, alarmingly, the deafening silence from mainstream media about the Ferrier case sends a clear message: not all threats to our democracy are treated equally.

Imagine, just for a moment, if a staunch conservative or an avowed Trump supporter had committed a similar act.

The media’s outcry would be swift and thunderous.

We’d be inundated with special reports, expert panels dissecting the motivations, and maybe even an FBI raid or two, broadcast live for all to see.

So why the glaring disparity in the coverage?

Now, it’s not to say that the media should be partisan in their reporting – quite the opposite.

But, there seems to be a selective blindness when it comes to threats and acts of violence from a certain side of the political spectrum.

The question we must all ask is: why?

Why is there an apparent double standard?

Why is one side of the aisle given the benefit of doubt, or even worse, an implicit sanction to engage in politically motivated violence?

One of the few other outlets to report on this was The Blaze:

Ferrier pleaded guilty in January 2023 and admitted in plea agreements that she made ricin at her residence in Quebec, Canada.

It is believed that the suspect chose the eight law enforcement officials because she thought that they were connected to a previous incident when she was detained in Texas for about 10 weeks in 2019.

In reference to Trump, the Department of Justice said Ferrier stated on social media that someone should “please shoot [T]rump in the face.”

Her letters to the former president contained threatening language and instructed Trump to “[g]ive up and remove [his] application for this election.” All the letters were mailed from Canada.

Ferrier allegedly told the judge before sentencing that she is an “activist,” not a terrorist.

“The ricin I made didn’t have a harmful concentration. It was just a strong warning. I did not target innocent people. It was never my attention to harm innocent people, and in fact I did not harm anyone,” she said.

Ferrier added that her “only regret” was that Trump didn’t listen to her and ran for president.

The answer may not be simple, but it’s clear that the media’s role as the fourth estate is to keep the public informed, to shed light on the darkest corners of our society, and to hold all wrongdoers accountable, regardless of their political leanings.

Political violence, no matter who perpetrates it, should be condemned in the strongest terms.

It’s about time the media does its job, ensuring that no threat to our democracy, no matter how seemingly isolated, goes unreported or downplayed.

Thank goodness President Trump is safe!

 

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