Since we discussed limits to free speech in 2301, how about the elderly man who asked "who is going to shoot Obama?" in a town hall meeting.
Is this a constitutionally protected question? a veiled threat? an invitation?
Plum Line discusses the Secret Services response: one group who took this seriously is the Secret Service. According to Ed Donovan, a Secret Service spokesman, the situation has been looked into.
"We're aware of the incident and the appropriate steps were taken," Donovan told me. "At this point it's a closed matter."
A law enforcement source confirmed that the Secret Service interviewed the constituent and determined that he or she was an "elderly person" who now regrets making a bad joke.
"In this case this was poor taste," the source says. "The person realized that."
The Atlantic Maganize recently ran an interesting article looking inside the Secret Service.
Here's a related court case from C-Span:
Ardith McPherson was a deputy constable and clerical employee serving in Harris County, Texas. Upon hearing about the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan on March 30, 1981, she told a coworker, "If they go for him again, I hope they get him." Another co-worker overheard the comment and reported it to Constable Walter Rankin, who then fired McPherson.
