St. Louis Gun-Brandisher Mark McCloskey Announces Run for Senator of Missouri

essentialsaltes

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Mark McCloskey’s star rose quickly in the Republican Party after he and his wife pointed guns at racial justice protesters marching through their gated St. Louis neighborhood last summer — even as the couple was each hit with a felony weapons charge over the incident.

(Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) vowed in October to pardon the McCloskeys if they are convicted.)

He appeared on cable news to defend his actions and to vilify the peaceful crowd that was marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s nearby house. He gave a prime-time addressat the 2020 Republican National Convention last August.

Now, nearly a year after video of the tense faceoff with protesters went viral, McCloskey, 64, has announced plans to run for the Senate.

“God came knocking on my door disguised as an angry mob,” McCloskey said on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” “If we don’t stand up now and take this country back, it’s going away.”

--

“An angry mob marched to destroy my home and kill my family. I took a stand to defend them,” he said in the ad. “I am a proven fighter against the mob.”

Despite McCloskey’s repeated claims that he feared for his life and believed the protesters intended to harm his home during the march on June 28, video suggested that the crowd merely passed through an open gate on their way to the mayor’s home to stage a peaceful demonstration.


What a country! Where waving firearms at people just might be your ticket to Congress. He definitely got the memo that the new GOP platform is scant on policy, big on 'fighting to take back our country'.
 

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Nothing toooo special here. It is common for people who have been wronged by government to then announce their candidacy for some elective office or other, often at the urging of people who likewise felt that the person had been treated unjustly.
 
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iluvatar5150

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Ah yes, the guy who pointed a loaded weapon at unarmed protestors and also at his wife, because the two of them are apparently unaware of the notion of muzzle discipline. If you think these people are the poster children for gun rights, you're bad at guns.
 
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essentialsaltes

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Don't we all know what his house looks like by now?

fark_eBSYiF6KkikkB3yNJ4c21rfUd_w.png
 
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iluvatar5150

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Don't we all know what his house looks like by now?

fark_eBSYiF6KkikkB3yNJ4c21rfUd_w.png

I'll do you one better: $10 says that shirt was expertly tailored, too. It hangs like a shirt you'd wear clubbing, not like something you'd wear to bale hay. Take any other flannel shirt, undo the top 4 buttons and tell me how tightly it clings to your shoulders - more than likely, it'll be loose and look sloppy as heck. But not on this guy. With those shoulder seams where they are with 4 buttons undone, that means he can't actually get the rest of those buttons closed - the shoulders are way too small. (It kind of looks like there's some sort of stay holding that lower button half-closed, but it's hard to tell) And the way it's almost too small but not quite from this angle around his mid-section... Flannel shirts don't hang like that.

I'm not ever sure it's flannel. It kind of looks like a plaid dress shirt with snaps.

Screen-Shot-2021-05-18-at-3.26.50-PM.jpg
 
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Desk trauma

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I'm not ever sure it's flannel. It kind of looks like a plaid dress shirt with snaps.

Screen-Shot-2021-05-18-at-3.26.50-PM.jpg
Looks like pearl snaps to me. Button holes would not be visible with this resolution and would blend in with the fabric rather than show up as the same color on the left, his right, side of the shirt as the do on the opposite side.

I am as impressed with his country bonafides as I am with his ability to handle fire arms properly.
 
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ThatRobGuy

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Ah yes, the guy who pointed a loaded weapon at unarmed protestors and also at his wife, because the two of them are apparently unaware of the notion of muzzle discipline. If you think these people are the poster children for gun rights, you're bad at guns.

I would definitely agree that they're bad at guns... pretty sure they were accidentally pointing them at each other at point during the encounter.


...but, on the flip side, I feel that the notion of "they're just evil people who were pointing guns at unarmed protestors because <insert reason here>" is a tad unfair as well.

"Unarmed" doesn't mean "non-dangerous", and they stormed private property that they weren't allowed to be on. It was a gated, private community, which means that those weren't public roads, and anyone can't randomly stroll in there as they please.

If 30 unarmed people started marching up my driveway, yelling and acting menacing, the fact that they were unarmed wouldn't make it all that less frightening...mainly because there are 30 of them and 1 of me...and they're not supposed to be there.

I'd be "ready to go" too if that happened...although, I wouldn't be accidentally pointing an AR at my GF while she accidentally points a 9mm at me.

But none the less, I'd definitely make it clear that "alright kids, play time is over, it's time for you to go now, take it somewhere else"
 
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Desk trauma

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I would definitely agree that they're bad at guns... pretty sure they were accidentally pointing them at each other at point during the encounter.


...but, on the flip side, I feel that the notion of "they're just evil people who were pointing guns at unarmed protestors because <insert reason here>" is a tad unfair as well.

Them being awful with their guns is only an issue to me as they were inexplicably lionized for their actions after having done everything they could have wrong short of shooting an uninvolved bystander dead while there were numerous examples, (I usual point to the Sikhs standing in front of their store showing off a picture prefect non-proactive example of protecting ones property during unrest) of people doing the right thing with their guns. They are the MAGA Michel Brown case with none of the early ambiguity.


Being able to point out irresponsible firearm use for what it is has fallen afoul of not giving an inch in the gun control debate.
 
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ThatRobGuy

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Them being awful with their guns is only an issue to me as they were inexplicably lionized for their actions after having done everything short of shooting an uninvolved bystander dead while there were numerous examples, (I usual point to the Sikhs standing in front of their store showing off a picture prefect non-proactive example of protecting ones property during unrest) of people doing the right thing with their guns. Being able to point out irresponsible firearm use for what it is has fallen afoul of not giving an inch in the gun control debate.

I would certainly agree that they shouldn't be "revered" for how they handled themselves.

For instance (not sure if these were the guys you're referring to)
upload_2021-5-19_19-58-39.png


These guys did a great job of both, not pointing guns at people and maintaining reasonable control, but also sending the message "if you're looking for a place to chuck a brick through the window, this isn't the place, you'd best keep moving" during civil unrest.

My main objection to the demonization of the McCloskeys was because it was pushing the narrative of "see, people are so racist, that they'll just point guns at black people for walking down the street and peacefully protesting".... basically implying that, as long as people are claiming to protest in the name of social justice, everyone else has to just get out of their way and let them do whatever they want.

I think there's a balance there. People should have the right to protest, but it's also okay to let people know "you're not going to be tearing up my property because you're mad at the police"
 
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What a cast of characters! When I lived in St. Louis County in the 1990's, Missouri had a balanced government, and the Republicans who held office were not an embarrassment.

But McCloskey joins former Governor Eric Greitens in the Senate battle. He resigned as governor under duress after an extramarital affair during which he blackmailed her with the threat of releasing nude photos if she revealed their connection.

Ugh!

Then we have Sen. Hawley, who was seen saluting the insurrectionists with upraised fist outside the capitol and who was one of the strongest supporters of "The Big Lie." He lost his book contract with an established publisher and went with a much smaller conservative one.

Ugh!

I can't decide who is the worst. They are all unfit for office in different ways. Blackmailing a former lover (after taking compromising photos)? Uh-uh. Brandishing a gun towards peaceful protesters, for which you are facing criminal charges? Uh-uh. Expressing solidarity with insurrectionists who were threatening the lives of 99 of your Senate colleagues, including the vice-president? Uh-uh.

Who would vote for any of these three? Missouri Republicans, please get your act together and find some better candidates than this?
 
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I would definitely agree that they're bad at guns... pretty sure they were accidentally pointing them at each other at point during the encounter.


...but, on the flip side, I feel that the notion of "they're just evil people who were pointing guns at unarmed protestors because <insert reason here>" is a tad unfair as well.

"Unarmed" doesn't mean "non-dangerous", and they stormed private property that they weren't allowed to be on. It was a gated, private community, which means that those weren't public roads, and anyone can't randomly stroll in there as they please.

If 30 unarmed people started marching up my driveway, yelling and acting menacing, the fact that they were unarmed wouldn't make it all that less frightening...mainly because there are 30 of them and 1 of me...and they're not supposed to be there.

I'd be "ready to go" too if that happened...although, I wouldn't be accidentally pointing an AR at my GF while she accidentally points a 9mm at me.

But none the less, I'd definitely make it clear that "alright kids, play time is over, it's time for you to go now, take it somewhere else"

I could be wrong, but IIRC, the protestors were marching past their house down a street in a gated community, which is a bit different than marching down their specific driveway.

Either way, I agree that "evil" would be a bit much, but whatever label you'd apply to a combination of "dim-witted," "reactionary," "irresponsible," and "self-aggrandizing" would seem to fit. They're almost like the "Karen" meme incarnate.
 
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ThatRobGuy

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I could be wrong, but IIRC, the protestors were marching past their house down a street in a gated community, which is a bit different than marching down their specific driveway.

Either way, I agree that "evil" would be a bit much, but whatever label you'd apply to a combination of "dim-witted," "reactionary," "irresponsible," and "self-aggrandizing" would seem to fit. They're almost like the "Karen" meme incarnate.

If it's a private gated community (which I believe theirs was), it's not supposed to be open to the public, and the particular place the protesters were claiming to marching to wasn't even accessible from their private development, so I question how much of that "we were just on our way to XYZ" was an honest mistake vs. "let's intimidate some rich people" (who, for some reason, people assume are on the opposing side of BLM by default).

In fact, he'd had previous statements on social media stating that he supported BLM (with regards to their fight for civil rights). A lot of people just don't respond well to an angry-looking mob being in private property (when other mobs flying the same banner have recently destroyed private property).

But I can't pretend to know the motives of all of the people involved. I remember seeing an interview with the organizer of that particular march specifically saying that "making people uncomfortable is the point, that's how you wake people up" I linked in a previous thread about this topic some months back, I'll see if I can find it in the CF search tools... that may be true in some cases, but intentionally testing the boundaries of peoples' comfort level comes with some drawbacks too.
 
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Mark McCloskey’s star rose quickly in the Republican Party after he and his wife pointed guns at racial justice protesters marching through their gated St. Louis neighborhood last summer — even as the couple was each hit with a felony weapons charge over the incident.

(Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) vowed in October to pardon the McCloskeys if they are convicted.)

He appeared on cable news to defend his actions and to vilify the peaceful crowd that was marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson’s nearby house. He gave a prime-time addressat the 2020 Republican National Convention last August.

Now, nearly a year after video of the tense faceoff with protesters went viral, McCloskey, 64, has announced plans to run for the Senate.

“God came knocking on my door disguised as an angry mob,” McCloskey said on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.” “If we don’t stand up now and take this country back, it’s going away.”

--

“An angry mob marched to destroy my home and kill my family. I took a stand to defend them,” he said in the ad. “I am a proven fighter against the mob.”

Despite McCloskey’s repeated claims that he feared for his life and believed the protesters intended to harm his home during the march on June 28, video suggested that the crowd merely passed through an open gate on their way to the mayor’s home to stage a peaceful demonstration.


What a country! Where waving firearms at people just might be your ticket to Congress. He definitely got the memo that the new GOP platform is scant on policy, big on 'fighting to take back our country'.

People standing up for themselves and protecting their family against the victimization of an angry mob has always been a deeply popular narrative in the collective unconscious of the American public.

It's in Huckleberry Finn when the man steps out his front door to fire a warning shot at the mob he berates as cowards (because they are). It's why we suddenly sympathize with the Monster in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein when the mob shows up with torches and pitchforks. It's why Liam Neeson got to make Taken three times despite it being interesting only once.

It's a popular narrative...because despite the attempts to spin it, one man defending what is his against the many looks brave.
 
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iluvatar5150

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It's why Liam Neeson got to make Taken three times despite it being interesting only once.
FYI: He’s actually made that same movie over a dozen times (many of which we’ve watched and forgotten) just under different names. He’s turning into Steven Seagal.
 
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I'll do you one better: $10 says that shirt was expertly tailored, too. It hangs like a shirt you'd wear clubbing, not like something you'd wear to bale hay. Take any other flannel shirt, undo the top 4 buttons and tell me how tightly it clings to your shoulders - more than likely, it'll be loose and look sloppy as heck. But not on this guy. With those shoulder seams where they are with 4 buttons undone, that means he can't actually get the rest of those buttons closed - the shoulders are way too small. (It kind of looks like there's some sort of stay holding that lower button half-closed, but it's hard to tell) And the way it's almost too small but not quite from this angle around his mid-section... Flannel shirts don't hang like that.

I'm not ever sure it's flannel. It kind of looks like a plaid dress shirt with snaps.

tenor.gif
 
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essentialsaltes

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The McCloskeys plead guilty, surrender guns. No jail time.

A St. Louis couple who gained notoriety for waving guns at racial justice protesters last summer pleaded guilty Thursday to misdemeanor charges and agreed to give up the guns they used during the confrontation.

Patricia McCloskey, 61, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor harassment and was fined $2,000. Mark McCloskey, 63, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor fourth-degree assault and was fined $750.
 
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I could be wrong, but IIRC, the protestors were marching past their house down a street in a gated community, which is a bit different than marching down their specific driveway.

At least the "protesters" knew to stay away from that house. Other homes and businesses weren't so lucky.

Either way, I agree that "evil" would be a bit much, but whatever label you'd apply to a combination of "dim-witted," "reactionary," "irresponsible," and "self-aggrandizing" would seem to fit. They're almost like the "Karen" meme incarnate.

Any words that express negativity seem to be favorites when applied to people protecting their homes. Thugs don't like resistance as they go about their crimes of burning, looting, destroying and killing.
 
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If they were convicted on gun charges. They cannot run for office.

if they were found innocent and gun charges are moot.

They pled guilty, which carries the same weight as a conviction.
 
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