John Washington III Condemns the Threat Against the FBI Director and Says the Answer Is Accountability, Not Violence
After a Michigan man was charged with allegedly threatening to kill FBI Director Kash Patel, John Washington III said threats and violence are never the answer — and that a government which expects respect without accountability is part of the deeper problem he described.
John Washington III is speaking out after a Michigan man was charged with allegedly threatening to kill FBI Director Kash Patel. In a public statement, John Washington III said Americans have every right to challenge their government, criticize elected officials and speak out against corruption, but he drew a bright line: "There is a big difference between standing up for your rights and threatening someone's life."
"I do not support threats, violence, or intimidation against anyone," he wrote, "whether they're an ordinary citizen, a police officer, an FBI director, or the president of the United States." John Washington III said the case points to a deeper question — why, in his words, so many Americans are losing trust in the institutions created to serve and protect them.
"Our government is supposed to work for the people, not the other way around," he wrote. "But I also do not support a government that expects respect without accountability." John Washington III said nobody should be above the law, including the people enforcing it.
His prescription was constitutional rather than violent: protect freedom of speech, uphold due process, demand transparency and hold public officials accountable without resorting to violence. "The answer is not to threaten the government," he wrote. "The answer is to make the government answer to the people." John Washington III is a candidate for president in 2028.
