What We're Watching - In MAGAland Every Day Is Halloween Ugly

What We’re Watching – In MAGAland Every Day Is Halloween Ugly

October 28, 2022

What We’re Watching – In MAGAland Every Day Is Halloween Ugly

First up, the unhinged Right wing attack on Nancy Pelosi’s 82 year old husband, Paul. All the news outlets are reporting updates on the attack by election denier, COVID anti-vaxx militant, 42 year old David DePape, who shouted repeatedly, “Where Is Nancy Pelosi?” and was beating Paul Pelosi with a hammer when San Francisco Police Department officers entered the residence.

In a cursory review of DePape’s Facebook account, links to My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell were seen, containing (what else?) narratives about the 2020 election being stolen. There were also posts denigrating trans people and links to anti-science websites asserting that COVID vaccines are deadly. One of them stated, “The death rates being promoted are what ever ‘THEY’ want to be promoted as the death rate.”

Then there were links to YouTube content – titles such as “Global Elites Plan To Take Control Of YOUR Money! (Revealed).” DePape also considered the conviction of former Minneapolis P.D. Officer Derek Chauvin and his three other fellow officers for the murder of George Floyd, “a modern lynching.”

There were, of course, regurgitations of broad conspiracies such as the “New World Order” and “Global Elites.”

And Vice News, uncovered these unsurprising items:

VICE News found two online blogs under DePape’s name: “The Loving God” and “Frenly Frens.” One of them, which was updated the night before the attack and frequently over the last months, features a wide range of topics, including “pedogate, “great reset,” “voter fraud,” “da jewbs,” and “Covid.” Many of the tags referred to women, including one directly about Amber Heard—the target of many misogynistic attacks stemming from her lawsuit with Johnny Depp.
Recent headlines on “Frenly Frens” include “It’s OK to be White,” “Faking of Adolf Hitler for History,” and “Q.” The posts go on long diatribes against women, Jewish people, and Black people. One recent post referred to the Holocaust as a “hoax.” The writings also touch on popular far-right culture war topics, like “drag queen story hours,” “cultural marxism,” and child “grooming.”

Without question, there will be much more about DePape that will surface as both media, local and state law enforcement and the FBI dig further into the assailant’s background.

One thing there has been clear in the nearly 12 hours since the attack, is that Republicans, broadly, are quiet as church mice about the violence perpetrated against Paul Pelosi. There have been a few exceptions – Mitch McConnell, Steve Scalise, Ted Cruz.

And then there is this from McConnell’s fellow Senator from Kentucky, Rand Paul:

No one deserves to be assaulted. Unlike Nancy Pelosi’s daughter who celebrated my assault, I condemn this attack and wish Mr. Pelosi a speedy recovery. https://t.co/2LxIlbIYQP

— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) October 28, 2022

It is interesting to notice that Rand Paul can’t simply keep it classy and sincere, but has to invoke a perceived grievance related to Christine Pelosi, having quipped on one occasion that “Dr. Paul’s neighbor was right.”

It’s no secret that neither Rand Paul or any other Trumpublicans buy into Michelle Obama’s maxim that, “When they go low, we go high.” I’ll leave Aaron Rupar the last word on Rand Paul. “That Rand can’t bring himself to either just say nothing or condemn the assault without resorting to whataboutism speaks volumes about him.”

That there is an atmosphere of aggression and hate toward House Speaker Pelosi, is evident in the fact that the GOP is targeting her as a puppetmaster of various Democratic congressional candidates around the country, the following being a typical example:

Particularly conspicuous by his silence, is House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Neither he or his office have issued any public statement. It’s easy to understand why. He has been fully on board with the use of Ms. Pelosi as a political device, a Bete Noire upon which to focus resentment, hate and mistrust of Democrats generally.

And Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin, instead of taking a moment to reflect on what a politically motivated attack on a family member might mean to their loved ones, used the moment, to launch a crass slogan. At a rally for 7th district candidate, Yesli Vega, Youngkin quipped, “We’re going to send her (Nancy Pelosi) back to be with him in California. That’s what we’re going to do.”

This viral toxicity, has only one potent vaccine available. You have to set aside your misgivings about “the economy and inflation”, for which Republicans have no plan and for which Democrats, together with President Biden, have already rolled out initiatives to combat. The only proposal from the GOP, which we know is inevitable, is to award trillions more in tax avoidance to billionaire donors.

That means voting Democrat to preserve our democratic institutions and that means, get your ballots filled out and take them to the local polling locations that serve you and register to vote if you have not already done so.

Confirm You Are Registered to Vote | USAGov

Check your voter registration status to confirm that you’re able to vote in the next election. If you’re an active voter, you should not have to re-register if your name and address haven’t changed since the last election.

Since I touched briefly on what the media is serving up as an incessant drumbeat regarding – inflation and the economy, I thought I would mention how misleading the whole storyline Republicans who are lying to you regarding it, is. Inflation, for example, has almost nothing whatsoever to do with your district’s House member, whether they be Red or Blue. It primarily has to do with three things.

One, the global economy, two – consumer behavior and three, opportunistic corporations who know they have Americans by the short ones and are going to squeeze them for every thing they can get while the getting is good.

What we wrote about identifying the key driver in this problem that is being exploited for dramatic effect by both the GOP and mass media in their election coverage, remains as true as it was on August 25th of this year.

Why The Mass Media Cannot Name The Inflation Culprit

I also enjoyed a post from one of my FB friends, who shared a podcast from “Politics Girl”, who does a terrific job of laying out the reality on this in a very straightforward and persuasive outline.

She especially drives home a key point, being that while Republicans are selling a bill of goods about being the party that will solve your household’s fiscal woes, they not only do not have a plan, but also that they have no intention of even attempting to do so. Once you elect them, they will devote all of their time and attention to placating Trumpublican / Evangelical voters, who expect more spite, hate, cruelty and disruption – not solutions.