Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Outrunning The Crocodile

Last week, Donald Trump had dinner with the neo-Nazi, Nick Fuentes. That dinner was a clear sign that the United States' biggest problem is not just Donald Trump. Karen Tumulty writes:

In the wake of the GOP’s disappointing performance in the midterm elections, it is plainly self evident that the party has a “Trump problem.” But there is a deeper problem, and that is the Republican Party itself.

Republicans cannot move past Trump, as long as they cannot bring themselves to confront him and, by association, the element he attracts. This is not the party that had the fortitude to purge the hateful John Birch Society from its ranks in the mid-1960s. As former Republican National Committee spokesman Doug Heye put it to me, today’s Republicans still think they can “outrun the crocodile.”

Since the dinner became public over the weekend, we have heard plenty of prominent Republicans denounce antisemitism, as though doing that is anything other than basic human decency. Former secretary of state Mike Pompeo, who is reported to be considering a presidential bid of his own, tweeted that antisemitism is “a cancer” and declared: “We stand with the Jewish people in the fight against the world’s oldest bigotry.”

Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel issued a statement: “As I had repeatedly said, white supremacy, neo-Nazism, hate speech and bigotry are disgusting and do not have a home in the Republican Party.”

But depressingly few were willing to even mention Trump himself.

By refusing to confront Trump, the party refuses to deal with the problem head-on. Only former Republican governor Asa Hutchinson and former vice president Mike Pence have been willing to do that:

One welcome exception was outgoing Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R), who told CNN: "I don’t think it’s a good idea for a leader that is setting an example for the country or the party to meet with an avowed racist or antisemite. And so it’s very troubling, and it shouldn’t happen. And we need to avoid those kinds of empowering the extremes. And when you meet with people, you empower.” Another was Trump’s own vice president, Mike Pence, who said on NewsNation: “President Trump was wrong to give a white nationalist, an antisemite and a Holocaust denier a seat at the table, and I think he should apologize.”

When you're looking for cowardice, a good place to start is in the silence you hear.

Image: The Wrap


12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Republicans aren't trying to "outrun the crocodile;" they ARE the crocodile. Trump is a symptom of long-standing racist policies, not a cause.

Evangelicals like Pompeo back Israel because they believe it necessary to fulfill biblical end-time prophesies. Those same prophesies foretell the wholesale extermination of Jews who won't convert. So evangelical support of Israel is not a sign of opposition to antisemitism. The Israeli right-wing knows this full well but cynically continues to court US evangelicals for their political influence.

Cap

Owen Gray said...

They are wilfully ignorant, Cap. And they are vile.

Northern PoV said...

Methinks the boil has been lanced.

Owen Gray said...

One can only hope, PoV.

John B. said...

There's got to be a better way of signaling support to the followers of a racist bigot than going to dinner with him. Trump was probably being truthful when he claimed that he didn't know the guy would be there. He's a professional who knows how to monetize it while Kanye is just indulging in a costly piddle that won't end until either he or the last of his sponsors and fans have tired of it.

Owen Gray said...

You'd think that they'd tire of him pretty quickly, John.

MoS said...

Per Mitt Romney: “I voted to remove him from office twice … I don’t think he should be president of the United States. “I don’t think he should be the nominee of our party in 2024. And I certainly don’t want him hanging over our party like a gargoyle ... It’s a character issue.”

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/other/mitt-romney-brutally-assesses-how-low-donald-trump-will-go/ar-AA14H4cX?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=56cea96f03c44894a877a443d244ed7e&fbclid=IwAR3-FWMqFAFrddUVUOQYYdLzAG1G2dDfR52vYYh5gvFyulWC5x14XTEwBkU

Owen Gray said...

Thanks for the link, Mound. There are three profiles in courage in the Republican Party, Mound -- Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, and Romney. Romney is the only one left in office.

hels said...

"He claimed that he didn't know the guy would be there"? If I was Trump, I would have placed a guard on the front door and not allowed an uninvited person to barge in. Did the guard not recognise Fuentes' face?

Owen Gray said...

It's all hogwash, hels. Trump lies as often as he breathes.

hels said...

Owen. I am Australian. We use irony a lot :)

Owen Gray said...

Like Crocodile Dundee, hels, you Aussies appreciate dry humour.