Heaven help us all if the further deterioration of American politics is contingent upon Kevin McCarthy taking a stance for decency, not to mention common sense, but that is where we are. That is exactly the corner into which McCarthy finds himself painted. And Mitch McConnell is beside him, because Marjorie Taylor Greene went especially bat guano on steroids today.
Marge Greene has been out there in the weeds for some time, but she really hit a grand slam Qrazy homer today. She’s incensed that Mitt Romney, Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins have decided to vote for Judge Kentanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation to Supreme Court Justice. This action has earned the three senators the title “pro-pedophile.”
That got the ball rolling. And then later in the day she went full QAnon.
Marge Greene tonight says that Senators “Murkowski, Collins and Mitt Romney are pro-pedophile” for supporting Judge Jackson. She then says Jackson is “so ignorant she doesn’t even know what a woman is.” pic.twitter.com/osQQp3zdNc
— Ron Filipkowski ?? (@RonFilipkowski) April 6, 2022
Marge Greene tonight: “The Democrats are the party of pedophiles .. the party of princess predators from Disney .. the party of teachers .. trying to transition their elementary school age children.” pic.twitter.com/MMowXlIYM9
— Ron Filipkowski ?? (@RonFilipkowski) April 6, 2022
There is cray cray, there is batshit, and then there is Marge Greene. And bear this firmly in mind: She isn’t alone. The grotesque “soft on pedophiles” trope was on the lips of every Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Her dial on the crazy meter may be turned up a few notches more than her peers, but she is by no means alone. New York Daily News:
This grotesque trope was parroted by Republican senators during the hearing, led by Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri. The attack was so offensive on its face that even one right-wing National Review writer admitted it was “disingenuous,” calling the allegation “meritless to the point of demagoguery.”
Over at Fox, the primetime personalities were happy to roll with it. As one host asked baselessly, “Why would you sympathize with people who possess child pornography?”[…]
But Marj has never met a conspiracy theory she didn’t like, so naturally she’s taking it to cartoonish extremes.
Her five-part Twitter rant read in part: ”Any Senator voting to confirm #KJB is pro-pedophile just like she is.”
“There are MANY more qualified black women judges, that actually can define what a woman is, but Biden chose the one that protects evil child predators.”
“You are either a Senator that supports child rapists, child pornography, and the most vile child predators. Or you are a Senator who protects children and votes NO to KJB!”
“[Sen. Lisa] Murkowski, [Sen. Susan] Collins, and [Sen. Mitt] Romney are pro-pedophile. They just voted for #KBJ.”
Now, I asked around to see if this constituted actual malice, the bar by which courts determine defamation against a public person — because I can’t think of a worse smear than calling someone “pro-pedophile.”
Experts agree it falls within the realm of opinion, vile as it may be.
Here’s the bottom line, the ugly part that nobody in GOP leadership wants to look at: They have lost control. This level of nastiness is way beyond any partisan norm. Now McConnell is going to have to get involved, because Greene just called three members of his caucus “pro-pedophile.” But then again, McConnell has already been called “Biden’s Bitch” by Greene, so he may not want to get into it publicly with her and stir things up.
It would seem to be asking too much for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to condemn Greene for smearing Jackson — she is, after all, a Biden nominee. But for Murkowski, Collins and Romney, Greene’s allegations are a direct attack on the Senate itself, littered, as she would believe, with “pro-pedophiles” and people who support child predators.
McConnell, whom Greene has called “Biden’s b*tch,” has taken on Greene before. Last year he released a statement pointed directly at her: ”Loony lies and conspiracy theories are cancer for the Republican Party and our country,” it read. “Somebody who’s suggested that perhaps no airplane hit the Pentagon on 9/11, that horrifying school shootings were pre-staged, and that the Clintons crashed JFK Jr.’s airplane is not living in reality.”
A few months later, he scolded her again for comparing COVID regulations to Nazi Germany’s persecution of Jews, calling it “reprehensible.”
Recently, he distanced himself and the party from Greene’s views on Russia, calling her one of “some lonely voices out there that are in a different place.”
Now, these are hardly profiles in courage — Greene is an embarrassing disaster — but McConnell’s condemnations are farther than McCarthy has ever gone.
So far today, crickets from McConnell and the McCarthy we know has already said he would give Marge back her committee assignments if she’s reelected in November and Republicans win the House back.
How much crazier can it get? Will McCarthy and McConnell finally stand up to QAnon? Or, will they just let the GOP continue on down the tracks to Qrazytown and do nothing. This is a flashpoint moment. We’re going to find out.
First of all Marger Traitor Green is wrong as usual, it is Moscow Mitch Putin’s B**CH! And as is well known by now, there is no level of batshit crazy strait jackets and padded cells insane that republiKKKans and Q-nuts will not sink!!!
Matty Gaetz’s pal and Hatefest Tour partner labeling others as “pedophiles”.
That’s rich.
*smirk*
McConnell laid the foundation for what the GQP has become. When he realized his party was now the minority and that they couldn’t win elections or stop progressive bills through debate and policy, he went full obstructionist, welcomed the orange turd into the party and propped him up for 4 years, didn’t impeach him when he had two opportunities, said TFG had the right to challenge the election, then let those Q idiots rant and rave at the podium every chance they got, now joining their attempts to smear and ruin a woman who is more qualified to be a Supreme Court Justice than the 3 he rammed through. I hold McConnell responsible for being the primary villain in the destruction of our government and the circus clown show we are stuck with. He’s as big a POS as Trump and he’s getting what he deserves. Sadly, so are the rest of us.
Nope. They’ve shown they don’t care about that kind of thing any more.
What is with these people and their obsession with child trafficking and pedophilia??? Is it projection or just an obscene fascination? I don’t get it. Back in the 60’s we used to joke about how the right feared there was a Commie behind every door/curtain/etc. Now they’ve devolved to paranoia about pedophiles. They are going downhill at an alarming rate. I’ve long thought we needed birth control in the water system, but maybe we should also add psyche meds while we’re at it.