After Teamsters union president Jimmy Hoffa, Jr. called for a “war” against Republicans and tea partiers on Monday, one tea party group is calling for the union leader to resign.
“Calls to violence can never be acceptable in this civil society,” the Rockford, Illinois tea party group said in a statement. “Hoffa’s remarks were made in an introduction to Obama speaking to Auto Workers and Unions in Detroit and this sort of angry, hateful, call to violence should be repudiated by the President with a call from the President to ask Hoffa to resign his very public position of influence.”
While warming up a Labor Day crowed in Detroit before a speech by President Obama, Hoffa Jr. said unions need to pick a fight with tea partiers and congressional Republicans.
“President Obama, this is your army,” Hoffa Jr. declared. “We are ready to march. Let’s take these sons of bitches out and take America back to where America we belong.”
The Rockford tea party called Hoffa’s comments “incendiary and dangerous.”
“If even one member of the Tea Party is harmed by anyone after Hoffa’s call to violence, then Hoffa should be held accountable by the Justice System and Charged appropriately,” the group said.
Though Obama wasn’t present when Hoffa Jr. made his incendiary remarks, Obama noted the presence of the Teamsters union president during his speech. Other union bosses joining Obama at the rally were United Auto Workers President Bob King, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and SEIU President Mary Kay Henry.
A spokesman for the AFL-CIO has not answered multiple requests from The Daily Caller as to whether Trumka supports Hoffa’s comments.
UPDATE 5:08 p.m.
Tea Party Express chairwoman Amy Kremer called on President Obama to “condemn this inappropriate and uncivil rhetoric, which has no place in the public forum.”
“He should chastise Mr. Hoffa, his Vice-President, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Congressman Andre Carson and the other Obama supporters who have been outrageous in their comments,” Kremer said in a statement. “This is especially egregious coming from someone who supposedly represents working Americans when we have a President who has not only failed to create jobs, but won’t be holding his own job for much longer.”
Kremer said the Tea Party Express “demand[s] an immediate apology from Teamster President Jimmy Hoffa” and that the group “further urge[s] President Obama to strongly rebuke Hoffa for his dangerous comments.”
“Lying attacks on the tea party movement have disturbingly increased in recent days,” Kremer added. “It is high time that elected leaders like President Obama were held accountable when their key supporters engage in harmful and divisive rhetoric.”
