A) It doesn't much matter what the Kansas complaint against Tiller was since he was acquitted on all charges
Kansas law allows abortions after a fetus can survive outside the womb only if two independent doctors agree that it is necessary to save a women’s life or prevent “substantial and irreversible” harm to “a major bodily function,” a phrase that has been interpreted to include mental health.
Even with this in mind, the charges were largely that the doctor who Tiller often referred his patients to wasn't completely independent - yet the jury took only an hour to find him not guilty on all 19 counts.
The Details of the Complaint against Tiller are here (which I found on the Operation Rescue Website)
The complaint doesn't say anything like what O'Reilly claims, it simply documents the ages and weeks of gestation for 19 pregnancies terminated by Dr. Tiller during 2003 arguing that the second opinion wasn't sufficiently independent (since the only way to access Dr. Neuman was through Dr. Tiller's office), not whether or not the abortions were medically necessary or justified.
This doesn't change the opinion of the John Hopkins Dr, but apparently indicates that his arguments weren't convincing to the jury anymore than they are convincing to Walsh.
B) Joan Walsh is incorrect to say that the Knoxville shooter was inspired by Bill O'Reilly's writings, he admitted he was inspired by the work of Bill's frequent guest Bernard Goldberg.
This is what he said:
"This was a symbolic killing. Who I wanted to kill was every Democrat in the Senate & House, .the 100 people in Bernard Goldberg's book. I'd like to kill everyone in the mainstream media. But I know those people were inaccessible to me. I couldn't get to the generals & high ranking officers of the Marxist movement so I went after the foot soldiers, the chickenshit liberals that vote in these traitorous people. Someone had to get the ball rolling. I volunteered. I hope others do the same. It's the only way we can rid America of this cancerous pestilence."
O'Reilly: I'd like to send (Media Matters) a cake, but I might put something in it - and that might get me arrested
And now he's in denial that his little suggestions like this are being taken seriously.
Here's the thing though, Bill's entire reason for having Joan on his show, other than to attempt to berate and embarrass her, is to try and justify his own comments and actions in regards to his 4 year-long harassment of Dr. Tiller. To him the law doesn't matter - only his opinion. Tiller was found not guilty, his actions and practice was legal - many of the women he helped really DID need his service and withholding it probably wouldn't have saved the life of a severely ill or near dead fetus -- but under any and all circumstances what Scott Roeder did - with O'Reilly cheerleading Against the Law - was a Crime. It was a Hate Crime. It was Terrorism, and Bill is attempting here to minimize that fact.
O'Reilly probably didn't cross the Brandenburg standard and literally say - "Somebody TAKE THIS GUY OUT" - but he practically said everything else leading right up to it. In contrast all Walsh has done is point that out. By accusing Walsh of being a zealot for preaching adherence to the law - he continues to rationalize and justify criminal behavior, period.
P.S. If Tiller only did 19 Late-Term Abortions during 2003, how did the Washington times come up with an estimate of 60,000 during his entire career?
UPDATE: Walsh's Response in Salon (ht Squareboy)
Vyan
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