WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Southern Poverty Law Center is waging cultural, political and economic warfare against mainstream conservatives, sometimes leading to violence like the Charlie Kirk assassination, while at the same time turning a blind eye to far-left groups like Antifa, according to Republican lawmakers.
That was the case made by U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman of Wyoming, fellow Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee and witness testimony during a hearing held by a Judiciary subcommittee this week.
Democrats on the committee called the hearing “the latest attack” on groups they said serve a public purpose, and they chided the president and Republicans for ignoring certain domestic hate groups and racial attacks.
The Constitution and Limited Government Subcommittee chaired by U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, held the hearing to explore the ways that the SPLC — ostensibly, a watchdog of hate groups — works to suppress the speech and religion of everyday Americans, according to Roy.
‘Sprawling Ecosystem’
Hageman, Roy and others referred to the SPLC’s Hatewatch newsletter, Hate Map and other materials purporting to list right-wing extremists and disclose their locations.
“The intended effect of SPLC’s Hate Map is clear: By lumping mainstream conservative voices and organizations in with actual Nazis and extremists, the SPLC delegitimizes any opinion to the right of whatever line the SPLC deems acceptable,” Hageman said at the hearing.
Though the hearing focused solely on the SPLC, Roy said the group is “just one in a sprawling ecosystem of left-wing foundations, foreign-funding streams, donor-advised networks, legacy-media partners and activist legal groups” — all sharing the goal of silencing peaceful conservatives along with actual right-wing violent extremists.
Tactics include lobbying federal officials to shape law enforcement and education policies, and pressuring corporations to cut ties with conservative groups, such as by denying them access to the banking system, suppressing online content and calling for boycotts, Roy and others said.
Kirk Assassination
Organizations the SPLC labels as hate groups include Turning Point USA, formerly led by Kirk, who was assassinated while speaking at a Utah university in September.
“Since Charlie’s death, political violence against conservatives has only risen,” TP-USA ’s Andrew Sypher, a witness at the hearing, told the lawmakers.
One day before Kirk was assassinated, Roy said, “SPLC’s Hatewatch newsletter singled out Charlie and Turning Point USA by name, labeling them dangerous extremists.”
Added Roy: “And as without mercy, in the aftermath of Charlie’s assassination, there have been no retractions, no accountability, no acknowledgement of the risks inherent in branding mainstream political figures as existential threats.”
Hageman: What About Antifa?
Hageman said SPLC’s hate-group list has ballooned over the years to nearly 1,400 today. The list currently includes the Family Research Council and Moms for Liberty along with TP-USA — but not Antifa and pro-Hamas organizations.
Hageman quoted a former SPLC president as saying, when asked if Antifa would be listed, “There might be forms of hate out there that you may consider hateful, but it’s not the type of hate we follow.”
Hageman asked a hearing witness, journalist and author Tyler O’Neil, why many far-left groups are not on the SPLC’s list.
“They have ties to some of these organizations, particularly Antifa,” O’Neil replied, referring to the SPLC. “They hired a woman who is described as ‘Antifa’s Secret Weapon,’ a researcher.”
No SPLC members were called as witnesses at the hearing.
SPLC’s Transformation
Roy said the SPLC has morphed from its humble and noble origins in 1971, battling the Ku Klux Klan and advocating for civil rights, to become a fundraising juggernaut with hundreds of millions of dollars and a sweeping, aggressive left-wing agenda.
Roy said he respected the SPLC’s First Amendment rights but defended congressional oversight as proper because of how the group affects others’ personal safety — as well as others’ freedoms of speech and religion.
“We are here to defend and protect the First Amendment, and we’re not suggesting that we shouldn’t have groups that are able to exercise all of their First Amendment rights and speak clearly and freely,” Roy said.
Dem Cites White Nationalism
Democrats on the subcommittee, including U.S. Reps. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Mary Scanlon of Pennsylvania, complained about the hearing.
“This is just the latest act in a growing assault against organizations that serve an important function in our society,” Scanlon said.
“While today’s hearing targets one particular group, it’s part of a much larger attack than on one liberal institution. It’s part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration and its congressional allies to silence and intimidate civil society,” Scanlon said.
Added Raskin: “The president does not talk about extremist racial violence or white nationalism.”
The nearly three-hour hearing did not pertain to any specific legislation but could inform lawmakers’ decisions ahead.
Family Research Council
One of the witnesses was Family Research Council President Tony Perkins. Hageman asked him why the SPLC lists the FRC as a hate group.
“According to the SPLC, the reason is our Biblical view of marriage and human sexuality,” Perkins replied. “That is what causes them to classify us a hate group.”
The FRC was targeted for a mass shooting in 2012 but saved by a security guard.
The gunman, Floyd Corkins, conned the unarmed guard, Leonardo Johnson, into letting Corkins enter the FRC’s office building in downtown Washington, D.C.
Corkins then pulled a 9mm handgun out of a backpack and shot Johnson in the arm, but Johnson managed to wrestle the weapon away from Corkins and subdue him.
“Corkins later made statements to the FBI in which he said that he was a political activist and considered the Family Research Council to be a lobbying group,” according to a news release from federal prosecutors issued in 2013, when Corkins pleaded guilty to terrorism and other charges.
Corkins, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison, “also stated that he intended to kill as many people as possible,” said the news release. It noted Corkins had 50 rounds of ammunition in his backpack.
Hageman: Target on FRC’s Back
Hageman suggested the SPLC’s labeling of the FRC as a hate group was responsible for inciting the intended massacre in 2012.
“They actually put a target on your back, didn’t they, Mr. Perkins?” Hageman said.
“Correct,” he replied.
Lummis Statement
Cowboy State Daily reached out to Wyoming Republican U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis for comments on political violence.
Barrasso’s office did not reply, while Lummis issued the following statement:
“I think it’s clear that a lot of left-wing leaders and organizations have in recent years fueled and funded violent riots and created vitriol that has repeatedly turned to violence.
“This includes but is not limited to the public assassination of Charlie Kirk and the repeated attempted assassinations of President Trump.
“The American left needs to tone down their violent and extreme language and stop calling Trump and every Republican they don’t like a fascist, authoritarian, or a threat to democracy.
“Their inflammatory language has had real consequences, and it must come to an end if we are going to come back together as a country.”
Sean Barry can be reached at sean@cowboystatedaily.com.
