Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) just came clean, and I would imagine that he is about to face the wrath of his party leaders for doing so.
After Trump's assassination attempt, Golden ripped the hyperbole being used in politics to get people ramped up, calling them all "dangerous lies."
Talking Points…
- Stop the dangerous lies
- AOC can't help herself
- Analysis
Golden posted a very long thread on X calling for more civility and honesty in politics. He specifically called out the dangerous hyperbole used by both parties, posting:
"We can start by dropping hyperbolic threats about the stakes of this election.
"It should not be misleadingly portrayed as a struggle between democracy or authoritarianism or a battle against fascists or socialists bent on destroying America. These are dangerous lies."
He also posted:
"The result is an overwhelming sense of fear & anxiety about the future of our country, where the normal and tested tools of democracy no longer seem adequate to protect the common good.
"In this light, a rise of politically motivated violence in America is sadly unsurprising."
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY.) apparently did not read this thread because she fired off an attack against a fellow Democrat who had resigned himself to the idea that a second Trump term was certain after the failed assassination attempt. In an Axios story, the senior Democrat has stated:
"We've all resigned ourselves to a second Trump presidency."
AOC responded:
"If you're a 'senior Democrat' that feels this way, you should absolutely retire and make space for true leadership that refuses to resign themselves to fascism."
I have wondered from the outset if AOC even knows the definition of fascism because it is her party that has been suppressing the opposition and forcing its views, not the right in this country. It is just a trigger word, but it surely does not apply to the conservative movement in this country. We are not the ones in the White House playing a zero-sum game and insisting on all-or-nothing legislation.
It would be wonderful if we could get back to a time when politics were more civil, but that is not how the game is played today, and surely not for the foreseeable future. Our politicians no longer see the opposing sides as human or someone with whom they can bargain, at least not openly. When the cameras are on, they paint the other side as despicable and a threat, yet when the cameras are off, they are having dinner together and yucking it up.
They are never held accountable for the climate they create outside of their world when people are hated simply because they are conservative or liberal. That is our burden, and it continues to rip this country apart while the very people responsible live in a bubble and do not have to suffer the wrath of the hatred and anger they create. I wish I had the answer on how to end this vicious cycle, but I fear we are stuck in a Groundhog Day scenario for the foreseeable future.
