The FBI arrested a California man Thursday for threatening to kill employees of the Boston Globe after the paper led a nationwide push to denounce President Trump’s attacks on the media. In his calls to the Globe, 68-year-old Robert Chain repeatedly referred to the media as the “enemy of the people,” a phrase Trump has used to describe the press as recently as this morning.
Chain, according to court documents, made 14 threatening calls to the Globe in a span of 12 days, beginning nearly a week before the Globe published an editorial headlined “Journalists Are Not the Enemy.” On August 16, the day the editorial was published, he allegedly called the paper and issued a direct warning:
“You’re the enemy of the people, and we’re going to kill every fucking one of you. Hey, why don’t you call the F, why don’t you call Mueller, maybe he can help you out buddy. Still there faggot? Alright, why, you going to trace my call? What are you going to do motherfucker? You ain’t going to do shit. I’m going to shoot you in the fucking head later today, at 4 o’clock. Goodbye.”
Investigators did in fact trace his call, pinpointing Chain’s location in Southern California. They also stationed officers outside the Globe’s office.
Chain’s calls continued for nearly a week, and on August 22, he explained why he was angry at the paper:
“Because you are the enemy of the people, and I want you to go fuck yourself. As long as you keep attacking the president, in the continuation of your treasonous and seditious acts, I will continue to threats, harass, and annoy the Boston Globe, owned by The New York Times, the other fake news.”
The New York Times has not owned the Globe since 2013.
