The Republican texters were leaders in their state parties; they were the up-and-comers, the future of the party structure. They call Kansas, Arizona, Vermont, and New York home.
In case you missed the reporting, or if you've forgotten what all the fuss was about, here's a graphic showing examples of the delightful thoughts they shared, from the linked Politico article, including an admission from one person involved that "if we ever had a leak of this chat, we'd be cooked fr fr." That means for real, x2
House Speaker and FOTUS flunky Rep. Mike Johnson (R-MAGA) spoke to reporters about the text controversy. You can watch his comments in this video. If you have a hard time watching and listening to him, as I do, here's a summary: he doesn’t know any of them, and while there was a photo of him standing with one or more of them, they were all wearing tuxedos, so it had to be from the Inauguration and they probably just wanted a selfie, like tons of others.
Johnson also doesn’t know anything about the Nazi flag or symbol that appeared in the background of a Congressional office, other than that it didn’t belong to the congressman, it was a staffer or something, and that’s being investigated, as it should be.
And the point of all of this, he said in the video, was that whatever was said, or shown, and whoever said it or showed it, “obviously”
doesn’t represent what the Republican party stands for because “We stand for
the founding principles of America. You want me to articulate them for you
right now? Individual freedom, Limited Government, Rule of Law, Peace through
Strength, Fiscal Responsibility, Free Markets, Human Dignity… the things that
lead to human flourishing.”
I can't tell you how many times I've watched him deliver those ideals, but I've moved from scratching my head when I do to outright laughter. The thought of 'human dignity' and MAGA Republicans in the same sentence is really mindboggling.
Think about what we've seen over the past several months (and before), and reflect on what today's Republicans stand for, either proactively, through state and federal legislative efforts, or passively, by sitting idly by while the FOTUS, the Heritage Foundation, and others put things into motion.
Individual
freedom? How about
bodily autonomy? Being able to peacefully protest in favor of or against issues
that matter to you, even when it involves Gaza and Palestinians, or immigration?
Not having another religion’s iconography and beliefs forced upon you, in public buildings, or children in public schools? Not having the federal government intrude into your voting
records? Being able to peacefully protest without being shot with pepper balls fired by federal agents from the rooftops above you? Being able to move about freely, speaking
whatever language you want, without being interrogated by federal agents?
Limited
government? Does this
include having the government dictate hiring, research subjects, curricula,
tuition, and admission practices at private colleges and universities? The
president killing programs that were approved and funded by our elected legislators before
he was elected, just because he doesn't like them? Withholding funding,
services, or supplies because he doesn't like the voting patterns of a state or
municipality? Elevating one religion over another in public K-12 schools?
Trying to interfere in the Constitutionally-guaranteed right of states to
manage elections? Renaming bodies of water? Imposing the ideas, name, and
tastes of the president on the country by executive fiat?
Rule of law? Oh, my goodness! Bald-faced lying to
judges in all levels of the court system? Sending the National Guard into places without the approval of the governors who command them?
Declaring "emergencies" to justify all kinds of nonsense, from
sending in troops to murdering foreigners in open waters, to ignoring the
Constitutional requirement for due process, to imposing tariffs when that responsibility
belongs to another branch of government? The myriad examples of defying
Court orders? Using the government - and our tax dollars - to exact retribution against personal enemies?
Peace through
Strength? Hmmm...
demanding we get something in return for foreign aid, unless of course it's aid
to Israel, which always goes with no strings attached? Working on negotiations
with other countries, while allowing Israel to bomb areas in those countries
without a response? Offering to give up Ukraine's territory to Russia? Actively
seeking regime change in another country through military actions, CIA
involvement, and financial incentives?
Fiscal
Responsibility? Two
words: Qatari jet. You know, the $400M 'gift' that’ll cost us as much as a billion
dollars. The entire DOGE fiasco, with bold lies about how much money is being saved, teenagers granted access to the government’s secrets, the repeated firing,
rehiring, refiring, and rehiring across the whole of government? More of the same lousy and irresponsible handling of personnel during the recent government shutdown? Allowing millions of dollars of
paid-for food and medical supplies to go bad or sit unused, instead of distributing them, selling
them, or giving them to Americans in need? Countless gratuitous and tone-deaf
trips to sporting events, hugely expensive trips to the president’s properties,
including during the government shutdown, and let’s not forget the birthday
parade… the jets for Homeland Security… and so much more.
Free Markets? Is that what we call it when the government demands a
percentage of the profits American companies make? Demands stock ownership,
including a 'golden share' of American companies? Kills subsidies for wind and solar power and
electric vehicles (while lamenting how far ahead of us China is with all of those), while adding subsidies for oil, natural gas, and
nuclear energy, and providing tax credits and incentives for coal and other
mining programs? Bails out farmers when ‘emergency’ tariffs make a mess of
things? There’s more, of course. And no, free-market intervention is not
unique to this administration; it’s been going on for decades, across multiple
administrations. But that’s not a free pass to claim you're for free markets
when it's demonstrably untrue.
Human Dignity? Isn’t it Republicans who enacted
legislation offering bounties to folks who spy on their neighbors' menstrual
cycles, medical appointments, and medications? Who ignore the dignity of patients
in favor of the personal beliefs of practitioners? Who hope to deny people the
right to marry a same-sex or mixed-race partner? Who find dignity in forcing pre-teen girls to have babies, and in denying people the treatment they desire or
need? Who ignore the expressed wishes of patients and/or their families in
end-of-life and other situations, and instead impose the government's wishes? Who
purposefully misgender a colleague?
It's almost laughable, isn't it, the irony of standing in front of cameras talking about "the things that lead to human flourishing" with a record like that above?
I took more than my fair share of leadership and communication classes in my career, and so I understand the value of having an 'elevator speech' that can be shared when someone asks what you stand for. And I understand that having someone like Johnson who can deliver the message on your behalf without skipping a beat is a gift.
But actually standing for what you say you stand for is much more important than having a speech you can deliver before the elevator doors open one floor up from where you got on.
And as an unaffiliated voter, I'd love to see both parties walk their talk.
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