Vox Founder Suspends Editor for Encouraging Riots at Trump Rallies

Not 24 hours after Vox editor Emmett Rensin published tweets prompting his followers to riot if Donald Trump comes to their towns, Ezra Klein, the publication's founder, has suspended him.

"If Trump is Hitler," Rensin tweeted late Thursday, "then you've got no business condemning rioters. If he isn't, you've got no business pretending normal is better."

The suspended Vox worker also asserted that it's "never a shame to storm the barricades set up around a fascist."

In a statement published Friday afternoon, Klein wrote that while "we encourage our writers to debate and disagree," Rensin's "direct encouragement of riots crosses a line between expressing a contrary opinion and directly encouraging dangerous, illegal activity."

"We welcome a variety of viewpoints, but we do not condone writing that could put others in danger," the statement continued.

As previously reported by TheBlaze, Rensin's tweets — which were still online at press time — were criticized by many on Twitter. Additionally, Ed Morrissey, a conservative writer for HotAir, condemned the controversial comments in a blog post Friday.

"Golly, mightn't this play hob with the accusation that Donald Trump is the one inciting riots?" he wrote.

Rensin also received condemnation from progressives. Mother Jones editor-in-chief Clara Jeffery said such comments just play "right into Trump's hands."

—

Follow the author of this story on Twitter:

Follow @tregp