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Organizer of Fake Interview Linked to Infamous Militia

He set up armed man near Obama town hall

By Nick McMaster,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 19, 2009 5:46 AM CDT

(Newser) – The conservative radio host who staged an interview with an armed protester near the president's town hall in Phoenix has long ties with hard-core fringe groups, reports Talking Points Memo. Ernest Hancock allied himself with a group called the Viper Militia in Arizona in the 1990s, many of whose members were convicted of a plot to blow up government buildings. He told TPM's Justin Elliott that he still believes the government cooked up the case, along with Waco.

"I've been feeling this coming again," he said. "It's the same people. It's Rahm Emanuel, it's Janet Napolitano. It's Hillary Clinton. All these were the same people that were doing it back then." At the Obama event, Hancock wielded a video camera and conducted a seemingly random interview with a man strapping a semiautomatic rifle. Turns out, Hancock—himself armed with a 9mm—had known the man for years, and they had hatched a plan ahead of time to air their anti-reform views in the interview.

Ernest Hancock, the man who organized an interview with an armed man outside a hall where President Obama was speaking, is shown in this undated photo.
Ernest Hancock, the man who organized an interview with an armed man outside a hall where President Obama was speaking, is shown in this undated photo.   (ErnestHancock.com)
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Here's the video.   (YouTube)

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 11 comments
cognitivefilter
Aug 20, 2009 3:10 AM CDT
um.....waco WAS a government job, i thought that was established?
AdaptAndOvercome
Aug 19, 2009 12:59 PM CDT
Proof to Americans. The GOP has shown not one single idea of how to fix any problem. They spend more time trying to stage things to look bad for the Democrat. Maybe they are all closet "directors". They went into the wrong field. Can you imagine these guys in Hollywood? They have gays in the closet and guys cheating on their wives and dingbats like Michelle Bachman and Sara Palin (put Paris Hilton and Linsay Lohan to shame). The GOP needs a reality check. And the next crop coming up is no different. Next time you see any footage of a GOP meeting, rally, etc. Look at the crowd. It's so white it's almost clear. These are the people they represent. America it isn't you. America is a diverse group of people with diverse ideas of what works for everyone. The GOP is mainly concerned with what's good for the WASP, just look at their crowds, it says it all.
LiberalJesus
Aug 19, 2009 12:53 PM CDT
Whack jobs.....everyone of them. To carry a gun to a town hall meeting is the height of cowardice and intimidation. It's sad that a grown man needs to carry a weapon to a public gathering. Only in third world countries like Nigeria, Columbia, Somalia do you see armed citizens and in those countiries there is no semblance of law and order. The sight of these cowards walking around brandishing a firearm and then havinng the numbskull audacity to cloak their fear and anger in a 2nd amendment right is just beyond reproach. I still have not had anyone from the right answer these 3 questions.....Why do you even bring a gun to a town hall gathering....what would that message really convey? And why are these people against heatlh care for all Americans? Why have they not come out and also demanded that we end these other "socialist" programs like Medicare, Social Security, FDA, EPA, CDC, OSHA, Coast Guard, police and fire protection, libraries, water treatment plants.....why do they not demand those "socialist" programs be gutted and ended. At least you gun totin bible beaters should be consistent..instead you are consistently hypocritical. But good ol Barney Frank really tore that ignorant woman a new one. Its about time Democrats started fighting back against the insanity that now passes as general republican thinking. Only cowards carry guns to a town hall meeting because there is not a "logical" reason to take a gun to any place where citizens are their to partake in a civic action.

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