Remember the candidacy of Representative Mo Brooks (R-AL) for the Senate seat of Jeff Sessions during the special election of last year? He came in third in the GOP primary, and during his concession speech he said:
I do not support the Islamic state.
Well, the outrageous attacks are continuing, this time in Mississippi where incumbent Senator Wicker (R-MS) is facing a primary challenge from a certain State Senator Chris McDaniels, who, according to the Clarion-Ledger, kicked off his campaign with these statements at a rallly:
State Sen. Chris McDaniel announced his challenge and immediately began trying to run to the right of incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker on Wednesday, calling him “one of the most liberal senators.”
“I’m tired of electing people to Washington to score points for the other team,” McDaniel told a crowd of about 200 in a packed auditorium at Jones County Junior College in Ellisville. “We’ve been reaching across the aisle for years and what have we got? Twenty-one trillion reasons not to reach across the aisle anymore.. Wicker votes more often with Charles Schumer than he does with Rand Paul.”
McDaniel promptly mentioned Wicker’s support for changing the Mississippi flag— the last in the nation to include the Confederate battle emblem — a potential weakness for Wicker among conservative, white Republicans.
Surely Senator Wicker must be some sort of liberal villain? Bunk buddies with Senate Minority Leader Schumer (D-NY)? Ummm … no. As of this writing, Senator Wicker has a Trump Score of 97%, meaning he votes the way Trump would like him to vote 97% of the time. No person willing to do a bit of research will mistake Wicker for being a liberal. He’s more like Trump’s lapdog.
And, of course, the bland mention of the government debt and associating it with the Democrats ignores this Congress’ contribution to the debt going forward, as well as the spend-happy Congress of 2000-2006, when the Republicans also controlled all the wings of government.
But it’s this willingness to indulge in blatant lies and misdirection which indicates the depth of the wounds in the Republican Party – and potentially the Democrats as well. This is all about a lust for position and power that overwhelms any basic urges towards the decency on which any reasonable society must be built. If we’re unwilling to treat our neighbors and political adversaries – all fellow Americans – in an honest and forthright manner, then our mainstream political culture is badly broken.
Once upon a time, political gatekeepers would have bounced people like McDaniels, and whoever spread the slander about Brooks, out on their noses. Today, they’re respected – or feared – politicians and political operatives who terminally pollute the very lakes in which they swim.
Prepare for more outrageous remarks by those desperate for prestige and power. Fortunately, behavior like McDaniels’ marks them with a big red flag. The trick is for the citizenry to do their research and reject McDaniels’ and his poisonous ilk – whether they’re running on the right or the left.
