Politics & Government

UPDATE: Malzone Retracts Comment, Apologizes to Public

Tea Party leader says comments about Supreme Court ruling do not reflect his true feelings.

Former Town Councilor Mike Malzone, the founder of the Merrimack Tea Party, said Thursday in a Facebook post reacting to on health care, "I hope the (5 supremes) get colon cancer."

A day after posting the message, Malzone said he stood by what he said. He clarified that he doesn't want anyone to die, and the cancer reference was more to make a point that he wants them to feel the pain being inflicted on Americans being overburdened by taxes.

“I didn't wish for anyone to die, but I said I do wish for them to feel our pain,” he said. “No one cares about me, they all make their promises and then go do what they goddamn feel.”

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On Saturday, he retracted his statement, removed it from Facebook and replaced it with an apology.

At this time I am publicly retracting the statements I made concerning the Supreme Court in the wake of their verdict regarding health care.

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I am retracting them because they do not reflect my true feelings about the Supreme Court Justices. They were made in the heat of the moment fueled by anger and frustration. I vented my anger without thinking and the result were hurtful remarks which I didn’t believe then and don’t believe now. I do not wish anything bad on the Supreme Court Justices or anyone else and never have.

The full apology can be read below.

Malzone, who briefly considered , posted the message on the Merrimack Tea Facebook page.

He said he feels “beaten down and worn out” by the government, and he is tired of paying taxes to help people who don't do enough to help themselves.

Merrimack Patch contacted Malzone on Friday after coming across the expletive-laden reaction to Thursday's Supreme Court ruling finding the individual health insurance mandate is constitutional.

In his reaction, Malzone expressed clear anger and frustration at the ruling. At the end of his post, he apologized to his followers for the strong language he used, but several people who responded told him no apology was necessary.

“I feel a lot more passionate about this than even this describes. Blow off all the steam, then lets get to work throwing them out,” one person wrote in a comment underneath Malzone's post.

“No apology needed, you said it well......we need to stop yapping and get to work to get these jerks out!” said another.

“You say exactly how I feel! I am so (expletive) mad today!!” added another.

Out of 14 comments, no one said they thought Malzone was in the wrong. The post also received 33 "likes."

On Friday afternoon, Malzone said he'd never felt so beaten down as he did after hearing the Supreme Court decision.

“I can't believe how angry I was,” he said. “But it is what it is. I apologized to Merrimack Tea followers for my language. I keep it clean on that page, I've never sworn before. But people said 'hey we feel your pain,' they told me not to worry about it, to blow off steam and move on.”

Malzone said it's a combination of things that make him wonder why he bothers to work if he could just go on welfare and get things for free.

In 10 years, he's paid $100,000 in property taxes on his house in Merrimack, he's seen his property value drop and his taxes go up. Insurance premiums continue to climb and are likely going to soar after this, he said. He's seen the price of cigarettes go up $2 in the last eight years and then found out recently that people can legally purchase cigarettes and beer using EBT cards.

“I pay taxes on my own cigarettes so other people can buy them for free?” Malzone asked. “Where's the justice in that? There is none.”

Malzone said he is not a hate-filled person; he loves serving his community and giving back and he's the first to help a neighbor if they need it. But yesterday was his breaking point.

“I'm so fed up, I'll do anything for anybody but they're breaking me, they're breaking me down," he said.

He questioned why he works seven days a week, and his wife six, just to barely make ends meet. They drive used cars and live by their own means, but he questioned why people who carry cell phones, drive fancy cars and have laptop computers can get away with saying they can't afford insurance and take government handouts.

“Where's the reward for working hard these days? There is none,” he said.

Malzone, who recently ran an unsuccessful campaign for an open seat on the Merrimack Town Council, said he wouldn't have posted what he did if he were a sitting public official. But as a citizen representing himself, he was exercising his right to free speech.

“I think no matter what I was doing, in the heat yesterday, that's how I felt,” he said. “I apologized to the people that do follow me, for my language. To the people that have done this to us, I don't apologize. But I do apologize to the people who follow me if I offended them.”

Malzone's apology statement on Facebook:

At this time I am publicly retracting the statements I made concerning the Supreme Court in the wake of their verdict regarding health care.

I am retracting them because they do not reflect my true feelings about the Supreme Court Justices. They were made in the heat of the moment fueled by anger and frustration. I vented my anger without thinking and the result were hurtful remarks which I didn’t believe then and don’t believe now. I do not wish anything bad on the Supreme Court Justices or anyone else and never have. I deeply regret my inability to properly convey my frustration or control my anger. My behavior was wrong and inexcusable. I take 100% responsibility for my actions and realize I am accountable for them.

I believe the Supreme Court’s verdict was incorrect and will bestow excessive taxation and hardship to millions of Americans but instead of explaining why they were wrong, I through my thoughtless statements, provided fodder for those who oppose the Tea Party. My words were mine alone and in no way representative of the Tea Party. I deeply regret that my actions will be used to attack individuals who work so hard to ensure that the values of the framers of the constitution continue to be adhered to and followed. The members of the Tea Party are thoughtful caring individuals I am sorry that my thoughtless words are being used to weave everyone one together but I am sure we will persevere because the Tea Party Message is consistent with the visions of the founders of our country.

This is my final statement on the issue. You can’t unring a bell and I will move forward. I am humbled and have learned a valuable lesson. In the future I will use better judgment and will continue to work hard to preserve the values and principles of our constitution.

Michael Malzone
Merrimack NH


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