Republican Governors Receive 'Threatening' Letter From Extremist Group, Lefty Blog Sniffs Out Rightwing Plot

Some heretofore unheard of group calling itself the Guardians of the Free Republics is apparently sending around letters to governors across the country, including one to Republican Governor Jim Gibbons of Nevada, telling them to resign from office.

The FBI confirmed today that it sent an advisory to Nevada and other states notifying authorities of an extremist group's demand to remove governors from office, but said federal officials did not believe the group was an "immediate or credible" threat of violence.

Stricter security measures were put in place in the Nevada Capitol this week after police received a letter addressed to Gov. Jim Gibbons, telling him to resign his office. It made a reference to "commandeering" the office if Gibbons declined.

"The FBI and Department of Homeland Security are not aware of any immediate or credible threats of violence as part of this group's plan," said FBI special agent Joseph Dickey.

Dickey described the group behind the letter as a "sovereign citizen extremist group." He said individuals in the group reject all forms of government authority - paying taxes and obeying state and federal laws.

Naturally, after both Republicans and Democrats received these letters a leftwing blog immediately declared this trouble for conservatives. Do these idiots even think it out before they post this nonsense?

Republican Bobby Jindal also received one of these letters. But somehow this is a rightwing plot? Virginia's Republican Governor Bob McDonnell also got one, as did Georgia's Republican Governor Sonny Perdue. If this is some threat to the left, why are Republicans governors getting these letters?

Reflexively, the media runs to the far-left Southern Poverty Law Center for reaction and works Tim McVeigh into the story.

A spokesman for the Southern Poverty Law Center, an Alabama-based nonprofit that monitors extremist groups, told the Register that the letters seem to be part of a trend "in an explosion in extremism on the far right." As examples, he cited people throwing bricks through Democratic offices after the health care vote to a tax protester flying an airplane into an IRS office in Texas in February.

Between 2008 and 2009, the number of extremist anti-government groups grew from 149 to 512, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. One adherent of the loosely affiliated sovereign citizens movement, according to the Anti-Defamation League, was Terry Nichols, an accomplice to Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.

Of course the nut who flew the plane into the IRS building was reciting Communist credo, but we're not supposed to mention that, I guess.