As was to be expected, I received some push-back to my assertion of Republican evil. What I hear ignores critical facts. Some are saddened or angered by what I say. Personally, I find myself seriously depressed at times that so many are so thoroughly in thrall to the blatant, seditious misinformation promoted by Republicans and right-wing media. This places American Democracy in serious peril.
The statements of the factual impact of the lies and emotional manipulation the GOP and its media promote, which are at the source of today’s political division, are seen as hateful lies. Has appalling death and destruction have NOT resulted from Republican policies and voices? Civil discourse demands fact and logic, which I strive to provide. Withholding facts to avoid upsetting some people is just appeasement, and accomplishes nothing.
What rises to the level of evil? Not the all the avoidable Covid-19 deaths and debilitations due to Republican lies, and their failure to promote the science? Not the unchecked global warming when science predicted the damage decades ago, and Republicans have steadfastly refused to take serious action to make America a global leader in combating global warming? The result: our planet is already suffering irreversible, destructive effects.
In the realm of politics and governance, what rises to the level of evil? Not Trump’s incessant lying, intended to manipulate his trusting base? His pandering to Putin? Facts are discernible. The ‘stolen election’ lie was debunked in 60-odd cases by the courts; even the so-called ‘audit’ in Arizona found nothing. Even worse, the vast majority of the house Republicans actually voted to endorse the lie!
Do you understand that there is no moral difference between acting to cause harm, and knowingly failing to act to avert harm? Few elected Republicans stood up to counter the lies. Elected Republicans have demonstrated that they have no commitment to honesty and integrity – only to money and power.
Every President wants to be a ‘uniter’ – to accomplish that, there must be a pathway. Republican-supported media have insured that there is none. Republican-supported media have spent at least 20 years feeding their viewers the ‘red meat’ of emotional and intellectual manipulation, to the point where critical thinking skills – necessary to see through the lies – are nowhere to be seen in the Republican base. Republican’s divisive rhetoric has inflamed political discourse and is believed wholeheartedly by far too many, to the point where the anger overflows in violent, often racist incidents, and in acts like we have seen to in the attack on Mr. Pelosi.
Republicans and their media intentionally rile up the base with emotional, personal attacks on Democrats: Sleepy Joe Biden and Lets Go Brandon are prominent slurs. Where is factual critique?
They relentlessly place false blame on Democratic programs for the ills our country is facing.
- Wasteful spending? Republicans spent years talking about infrastructure, doing nothing – so Democrats act, as they did in providing pandemic assistance.
- Inflation? I wrote about that – a global problem largely due to global energy prices and Covid-19 supply chain issues. Remember also that prices are set in the private sector, and there is precious little that government can do. Just what is the GOP plan, btw?
- The Afghanistan pull-out? Negotiated by Trump’s administration with the Taliban, without including the Afghan government in the talks; made worse by Trump’s Homeland Security refusing to act expeditiously on visa’s for the Afghan’s that supported us.
- Abortion? Republicans ignore the harm that occurs to pregnant women when they are forced to seek help outside the competent medical community, or when physicians are forced to deny service.
Add to this the efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and the ongoing efforts to give some states the power to do it ‘legally’ – which would effectively end American Democracy.
Facts, whole and complete, matter, and the GOP base doesn’t have them. Just exactly what would result in the education of the brainwashed masses that make up the Trump base? They seem immune to logic. I have come to the conclusion that this requires forcefully (and with a high degree of uncomfortable directness) presenting the facts, a perspective with a much higher degree of Integrity than that presented by MAGA media. We need to achieve the death of the ignorance of the GOP base. From a Christian perspective, instead of clothing the naked, we must clothe the naked minds. Denial and Anger are the first stages of grief, stages that the GOP base must work through before the body politic can heal. (See my old essay: https://demandintegrity.org/democracy/healing/)
Republican lies and the manipulative tactics of ‘red meat’ – together with the abject failure of Republican elected officials to stand up for the truth – are the source of division and real physical harm in America.
Yes, without question, today’s Republican Party is evil.