Feds and media debunk Sarah Palin's claim that the government is "stockpiling bullets."

Courtesy of Politico:  

The feds say Sarah Palin is firing blanks with her claim that the government is “stockpiling bullets” for potential civil unrest in case the country defaults on its loans. 

While government agencies are, in fact, purchasing large amounts of ammunition, they are doing so for training exercises and shooting ranges, according to federal officials. The Washington Post last month summed up the Department of Homeland Security’s buying of more than 1.6 billion rounds of ammunition for training with an article headlined, “Not so sinister: Homeland Security is stockpiling ammo for target practice.” 

“Media reports expressed concerns over the type of ammunition ordered,” the statement continued, apparently referring to hollow-point bullets. “In fact, this type of ammunition is standard issue for many law enforcement agencies. OIG’s special agents use this ammunition during their mandatory quarterly firearms qualifications and other training sessions, to ensure agent and public safety. Additionally, the ammunition our agents use is the same type used at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.” 

Meanwhile, as the Atlantic Wire noted on Wednesday, Snopes had debunked the rumor last August tracing it (in part) to an anonymous online conspiracy letter from last August. 

Palin - who wrote on her Facebook page on Tuesday, “We’re going to default eventually and that’s why the feds are stockpiling bullets in case of civil unrest” - joins conservatives Alex Jones of InfoWars.com, who wrote about the ammo buy last year, and radio host Mark Levin, who said on his radio program earlier this month that the government is “arming up” because society is “unraveling.” 

So now Palin is firmly identified along with the looniest of the Right Wing lunatics.

And thanks to these recent Facebook rants, she has made that abundantly clear, even among those who may have once thought she had something viable to offer in the political sphere.

With every tweet and ghostwritten Facebook post she drains a little more out of the pool of support that she still has left, until, as we are seeing today, she becomes nothing more than a barometer to measure the incompetence of political figures, a fall back joke for late night comedians, and a cautionary tale for those who want to parlay their fifteen minutes of fame into a life of wealth and luxury.