SSP Editorial: She Wanted Me and State Senators Dead

She wanted me dead.

You may have read Robert Chartuk's story in the South Shore Press about Jessica Bowie's plan to blow up the New York State Capitol.

This Isis sympathizer's plans to kill hits closer to home. In addition to writing for the South Shore Press, I work for numerous Republicans in NYS and across America.

My work takes me across the country from the halls of Congress, to Governor's races all over the nation, and yes, right inside the Senate chambers at the State Capitol building in Albany.

As a matter of fact, I took the picture myself attached to this story, a few feet from where NYS Senators sit. That's how close I am to where federal authorities allege this American born lunatic turned Isis sympathizer wanted to place a bomb to blow up the building, and all of us in this chamber.

She allegedly told an FBI informant: “I want to destroy as much of the building as possible and kill the senators while they are meeting.”

Bowie, a 35-year-old Albany resident, is accused of attempting to provide material support to ISIS.

But the FBI affidavit supporting the federal criminal complaint provides a chilling account of what authorities allege she wanted to accomplish: mass murder.

According to the FBI, Bowie identified her target early: “I would like to target state capitol.” She allegedly sent photographs of the Capitol, conducted surveillance and discussed when to strike: “Perhaps onna day when we know senators will be meeting.”

According to the indictment, Bowie didn't want an empty building; she wanted lawmakers and staff inside. Including me.

During a recorded August 5th meeting, Bowie allegedly said the attack should occur when the greatest number of senators were present, and killing staff like me wasn't enough.

“I don't really know what it looks like inside yet or maybe some secretaries like that's not that's not enough.”

Then came perhaps her most cold, chilling calculation:

“I don't want to take this kind of risk and then have it kill what, two or three people what good is that?” What good is killing two or three people?

Words are one thing. Acting on your intent to kill innocent Americans is another. That is when her alleged plot moved toward action.

At a Home Depot in the Albany area, Bowie purchased materials she believed would be used to construct an explosive, including nails. “I hope the nails are big enough,” she allegedly said, “because the nails work as shrapnel, right?”

Trust me folks, if you've been to the Capitol building in Albany, you'll be amazed at the thick granite and stone columns, walls, and stairs. It isn't called the "million dollar staircase" for nothing. The building itself is a strong, sturdy fortress.

So her nails shrapnel wasn't intended to destroy this gargantuan granite Goliath; her mad mission was for shrapnel to tear through people.

In her quest to kill as many "infidels as possible, Bowie then doubled down on her thirst to slay her supposed enemy, even allegedly seeking a handgun, too: “So if the cops do get towards me during the operation I can shoot back.”

These allegations should terrify us. Political violence cannot become another headline we scroll past, especially as we approach the 25 year anniversary of 9/11. Most recent college graduates weren't even born when the Osama bin Laden attack killed thousands of innocent souls at the Twin Towers, Pentagon, and on United Airlines Flight 93

We can disagree with politicians, condemn their policies, protest them and defeat them at the ballot box; that's America. That's democracy in action as our Founding Fathers intended.

Bombing lawmakers because they write laws, shooting police who try to stop you, accepting dead children and pregnant women as collateral damage, and packing an explosive with nails because you want people shredded by shrapnel isn't.

That is the face of terrorism, and in this case it hits really close to home.