mark potok

Mark Potok of the SPLC

Mark Potok is the director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's "Intelligence Project". In that role he issues McCarthyite declarations that some organization are "hate groups" and acts as a quote source for an endless series of MSM articles. The SPLC is indirectly linked to the Mexican government, and much of their recent work consists not of fighting the Klan but instead of fighting those who want to - unlike the SPLC - enforce our immigration laws.

If you trust his judgment, read about how he misled about hate crime statistics.

Last modified Feb 16, 2009
Discussed in (click each link for the full post):

DHS uses Giffords shooting to push loose borders political agenda (Jared Lee Loughner, American Renaissance) - 01/09/11

[IMPORTANT UPDATE: AmRen has been cleared, and Fox's memo wasn't even from the DHS. See the updates below.] The Department of Homeland Security and various media sources are using the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords by Jared Lee Loughner as an opportunity to try to smear opponents of illegal immigration, focusing on the higher-level white racial separatist group American Renaissance (DHS memo at [1], report at [2]). Not only do they get that group's ideas wrong, but they mislead about what was in Loughner's videos and what appears to have been on his MySpace page. From the memo at [1]: no...

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, several others shot; Palin, Tea Party candidate - 01/08/11

UPDATES BELOW Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and several others were shot earlier today and there are conflicting reports on whether she and others were killed. Per this: The gunman, who may have come from inside the Safeway, walked up and shot Gifford in the head first, "point blank". According to [an eyewitness, Steven Rayle], who is a former ER doctor, Gifford was able to move her hands after being shot... After shooting Gifford, the gunman opened fire indiscriminately for a few seconds, firing 20-30 rounds and hitting a number of people, including a kid no older than 10 years old... The gunman...

LULAC, Mark Potok of SPLC, NCLR, America's Voice, MMFA cheer & smear over Dobbs leaving - 11/12/09

There's a round-up of reaction from far-left groups to Lou Dobbs' announcement that he's leaving CNN here.

SPLC smears Steve Levy in quest to support illegal activity (Suffolk County, Long Island; CAP) - 09/02/09

The Southern Poverty Law Center has a new report entitled "Climate of Fear/Latino Immigrants in Suffolk County, N.Y." about that county on Long Island, New York (splcenter.org/news/item.jsp?aid=395). County executive Steve Levy has attempted to reduce illegal immigration in his county, such as by taking actions against residences where dozens of illegal aliens live; see this from 2005 and also this (involving then-Mexican consul Arturo Sarukhan) and this. In the current case, the SPLC is trying to conflate Levy's efforts with violent attacks in that county, both reported and simply alleged....

Obama, ADL, SPLC, Phil Gordon, Catherine Herridge, Shep Smith, Joan Walsh, Chris Matthews, others try to exploit shooting at Holocaust Museum - 06/11/09

Here are just some of those trying to use yesterday's shooting at the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC to score political points: * Barack Obama says: "This outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms". That sounds good, until one remembers things like Rev. Jeremiah Wright, "bitter cling", his campaign's constant attempts to race-bait, his smears of Lou Dobbs and Rush Limbaugh, and how he'd deal with "hate" (see #14). * Josh Gerstein of the Politico in "Attacks validate DHS report, some say" (link). He quotes the Southern...

SPLC: DHS rightwing extremist report mentions them and "tracks" theirs "fairly closely" (Harry Smith; +two errors) - 04/16/09

As you haven't heard from almost anyone else, the recent Department of Homeland Security report warning about rightwing extremists mentions - without naming it - a misleading report from the Southern Poverty Law Center. I say "almost" because of this: Mark Potok, director of the [SPLC's] intelligence project, said... he was generally pleased with the report... "Basically, the report tracks fairly closely with what we have been saying for some time now. They mention us a couple of times, though not by name," he said. Anyone who wants to do something effective about the report should stress...

SPLC names "hate group" based on something they didn't promote - 04/10/09

The Southern Poverty Law Center publishes a list of "hate groups" which includes both true hate groups as well as those who simply disagree with the SPLC's support for illegal immigration and the like. That would be insignificant if it weren't for the fact that the mainstream media as well as even government agencies take them seriously.

Carrie Johnson /WaPo smears opponents of Obama, immigration (rise in "hate", SPLC) - 01/11/09

Carrie Johnson of the Washington Post offers "Bad Economy May Fuel Hate Groups, Experts Warn/Experts Warn That Downturn Could Drive Discontent, Help Extremists Recruit" (link), which is basically the same article as that offered by Jesse Washington of the AP and others back in November, albeit updated for the current economic conditions. She starts out with the possibility that Obama's win, immigration, and the slumping economy could lead to rising membership in "hate" groups. Aside from the "experts" quoted, she provides no evidence in support of her assertion, and at the end she provides...

Jesse Washington/AP's supposed "outbreak of racial anger" after Obama win - 11/16/08

Jesse Washington of the Associate Press provides another example of Obama supporters continuing to play the race card after the election and by so doing shows that Obama's method of winning hasn't actually done much about race relations. The article is an example of the MSM and friends basically just keeping one race in line as was done in the past with another race (link). Crosses burning. Children chanting, "Assassinate Obama." Racial epithets scrawled on homes and cars. Yes, there definitely has been an outbreak of isolated incidents involving those who have no real power. Washington can...

Judy Bachrach/Vanity Fair smears Lou Dobbs - 08/08/08

Freelance writer and Vanity Fair contributor Judy Bachrach offers a smear of Lou Dobbs in "Lou Doubts" (poder360.com/article_detail.php?id_article=549). It's yet another example of the illegal activity-supporting establishment trying to reduce his influence in order to profit from illegal activity in one way or another.

SPLC's "The Year in Hate" misled about FBI hate crime statistics - 03/31/08

Earlier this month the Southern Poverty Law Center - a group indirectly linked to the Mexican government - released a report entitled "The Year in Hate", which continued their attempt to shut down debate about immigration matters. Per the AP:

James Pinkerton, Mark Potok, Doris Meissner oppose citizen action against illegal immigration - 11/05/07

James Pinkerton of the Houston Chronicle offers "Taking border battle to the streets" about a local group (U.S. Border Watch) that protests in front of day laborer sites. While it's not as bad as other similar articles, he takes his lead from LBJ: he doesn't call them racists, he just makes them deny it. [see the update] Far from the halls of Congress and the front lines of the Southwest border, the divisive immigration debate is being played out in local neighborhoods, including the Houston area. A number of groups have upped the ante by moving from debate to confrontation, attempting to...

Center for American Progress' indirect Mexican government link (Henry Fernandez, Kica Matos) - 10/13/07

Henry Fernandez, Senior Fellow at the Clinton-linked Center for American Progress, is hosting a CAP event entitled "Strange Bed Fellows? Anti-immigration Organizations and Hate Groups" on October 18 [1]. The panelists are Mark Potok of the Southern Poverty Law Center (a group indirectly linked to the Mexican government) and Devin Burghart from the Center for New Community. Luckily, I scrolled down to the bottom of the page and I saw this: Fernandez lives with his wife Kica Matos and their son in New Haven, Connecticut. Matos is the former head of Junta for Progressive Action, a group that's...

Brad Knickerbocker of the CSM: Can you trust his reporting? - 01/22/06

Most definitely you can. Assuming that is, of course, that you want heavily biased yellow reportage such as that featured in "Across the country, many mobilize against illegal immigration" (link).