When pro-gun folks show up somewhere simply carrying firearms in accordance with the law, many on the other side of the debate try to claim that doing so counts as some kind of threat. Despite no one saying anything that would suggest an intent to harm others, they claim the mere presence of a firearm counts as a threatening action.

It’s not, though.

No, an actual threat is what we’ve learned one Minnesota man is accused of making toward a Republican senator.

In the first message, [Brendon Michael] Daugherty said, “You and the Republican Party should be proud that you’re pushing me to become a domestic terrorist. Have a nice (expletive) day; can’t wait to kill ya.”

In the second, Daugherty said, “I also just wanted to note, thank god the Republican Party is against gun control laws because it would keep guns out of the hands of a person that was disabled and volatile like I am, but you guys are totally against that. So I may actually get to carry out my nefarious goals.”

On Sept. 2, FBI agents spoke with Daugherty at his Coon Rapids home. According to court documents, he admitted making the calls and said he did so because the senator was “doing a bunch of stupid (expletive) with gun control,” and that he wants politicians to “feel a little bit pressured.”

So his answer to gun control–an issue people like him tend to believe will reduce violence–is to threaten violence?

Yeah, that’s a stable individual.

And we’re supposedly the violent, dangerous ones?

Look, I’ve condemned death threats across the board. I don’t care who is issuing them and who is getting them. They’re stupid and vile.

But we’ve also seen a lot of people on the anti-gun side claim they’ve gotten death threats with absolutely no proof. They make their claims and then never offer a shred of proof.

So while I condemn the alleged threats, I often don’t believe those threats exist without evidence.

This has evidence, though. We have recordings and charges have been filed against this anti-gun loon. These are real threats, too, not “I hope you die” comments that get spun as threats.

No, this is the real deal and it seems Daugherty isn’t actually denying that he made the threats, either.

Oh, I’m sure he feels perfectly vindicated, but he’s not.

What’s more, though, is that my experience is that he’s far from alone in the anti-gun ranks. I’ve seen a lot of people who seem to support gun control because they know they’re likely violent and would act in an unhinged manner if they had a gun, so they assume that’s true of the rest of us.

It’s not, but that’s certainly how it looks from here.

Daugherty’s threats aren’t that unusual except that he managed to do them to a United States senator. He wanted the senator to feel some pressure, he says. I don’t believe him. I think he actually wanted to do just that, but when the FBI showed up, he figured he could spin it and keep himself out of trouble.

In fairness, considering how the FBI has been lately, he may not have been completely off-base. However, he still committed a crime, and I hope he gets the full force of the legal system right in his face.