Conservative star Candace Owens got into a Twitter fight with a member of Mollie Tibbetts’ family this week as politicians and pundits take stands on the murder allegedly committed by an illegal immigrant.
Sam Lucas, confirmed by CNN to be a cousin of Ms. Tibbetts, slammed Ms. Owens after she tweeted that Democrats defended immigrants over American citizens.
“Now stop being a f—ing snake and using my cousin’s death as political propaganda,” Ms. Lucas wrote, “Take her name out of your mouth.”
Ms. Owens fired back at Ms. Lucas and criticized her for insulting “people who support the president” but not the murder suspect.
I find it strange that you have directed obscenities and hate towards people that support the President, but you have not directed a single bad word toward the monster who committed this terrible crime.
— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) August 22, 2018
Ms. Lucas said she, “had nothing but evil thoughts about this man” but insisted that not all immigrants who illegally cross the border should be framed in the same way.
I don’t have this mans twitter handle, or any way to contact him, but trust me, I have had nothing but evil thoughts about this man. HE is a devil. That doesn’t mean that everyone like him is. I think it’s despicable that you’re using her death to push a political agenda.
— sam (@samlucasss) August 22, 2018
Police on Tuesday charged Cristhian Rivera with first-degree murder after he led them to the body. Homeland Security confirmed with local authorities that he was in the country illegally.
The revelation sparked a surge of political commentary from both sides of the aisle about illegal immigration. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat, responded with a focus on family separation, while President Trump touted the work of ICE this week in response to the news.
Wednesday, Axios reported that former House speaker Newt Gingrich emailed them to ensure the Tibbetts murder would get coverage.
“If Mollie Tibbetts is a household name by October, Democrats will be in deep trouble. If we can be blocked by Manafort-Cohen, etc., then GOP could lose [the House] badly,” Mr. Gingrich wrote.
After the Twitter fight, Ms. Lucas said her opinion didn’t necessarily reflect the sentiments of the entire family, but argued that Tibbetts’ loved ones “should be able to grieve without politics.”
TO BE PERFECTLY CLEAR: i’m not a member of Mollie’s immediate family. i am a 2nd cousin but it’s hard to write all that in a tweet. we have a family facebook page where we’ve all been in contact and grieving together. i was only saying we should be able to grieve without politics
— sam (@samlucasss) August 22, 2018
and if this wasn’t already obvious, i don’t speak for the entire family! no one could. i have my political opinions but that’s not why i said any of this — i only said this because i want all family members to be able to grieve in peace. that’s literally all i meant.
— sam (@samlucasss) August 22, 2018
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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