Saturday, August 10, 2019

Hannity and Limbaugh: Republican toadies





      Within the past couple of weeks or so, our illustrious President Trump, a so-called "Republican", has:
·         Colluded with the Democrats to raise the debt ceiling to over $22 Trillion.
·         Pushed forward with his ill-informed trade war with China, causing the stock market to crash big-time.
·         Continued his incessant, hateful racial rhetoric against Hispanics, which inspired a loyal follower to commit mass murder.
·         Colluded with Democrats to institute new requirements on gun ownership
     I usually tune my car radio over to the talk channels when running errands during the day, just to see what the right-wing pundits have to say.  What will his devoted, hypnotized supporters say this time?  Is there a chance in Hades that maybe, FINALLY, they will have had enough of this inept, unfit man-child with dubious Republican credentials, and speak the truth?
     Dream on.
     So how did they defend Trumpism?  The main lines of defense all go something like this:
·         the Democrats are awful
·         the Democrats did it first
·         the Democrats made him do it
·         the Democrats are even worse
·         the Democrats hate him
·         the Democrats cannot accept that he beat Hillary
and so on and so on and so on.  Every sin and shortcoming committed by Trump was either blamed on the Democrats, or nullified because of Democratic actions, or something along those lines.  In essence, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity logic says that:  as long as the left-wing and the Democrats do bad things, then it's all Ok.  In other words: the Democrats set the standard.  They are the role model that Republicans should follow.   
      Those two talk radio hosts are nothing but Republican toadies.  A "toady", according to Wikitext, is:  a sycophant who flatters others to gain personal advantage, or an obsequious lackey or minion.
      The other day I was listening to Hannity, and a caller attempted to point out some of Trump's previous racist utterances.  Hannity would break in with:  "But what about Warren and Sanders and all the leftists?!?"  The caller would remind Hannity that this conversation was about Trump, NOT the Democrats, and implore him - in vain - to stop changing the subject.  Clearly, Hannity is not a good debater.
      Now it is true that their condemnation of the sins and maniacal utterances from the left are spot on.  The Democrats have, for example, made racist statements, or accused white Republicans of being racist.  Their hateful, toxic statements have inspired left-wing fanatics to commit acts of violence, such as the attempted assassination of Senator Steve Scalise (R-La), or the attempt to link George W. Bush to the lynching of James Byrd.  It has been suggested that the harsh rhetoric of Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders inspired the recent mass murder in Dayton, Ohio.  And of course Democrats are quite brazen about their economic policies designed to make the USA more like Venezuela, or the Soviet Union.  
      Another line of defense used by our Republican toadies is that Trump is not responsible for the recent murders of Hispanics in El Paso, because his is not the one who pulled the trigger.  I will agree that Trump is not 100% responsible - but neither is he zero percent responsible.  Look at the things Trump has said:  He has called Hispanics "murderers, rapists, and criminals" from "shithole countries"; he claimed that Indiana-born Judge Gonzalo Curiel "cannot be impartial" because he is of Mexican decent; he instigated the "send them back!" chants for the four Democratic Congresswomen; he called the white supremacists in the Charlotte riots "fine people"; he did NOT reject support from white supremacist organizations during the campaign; and he has instituted cruel and draconian measures to discourage Hispanic immigrants from seeking asylum.  One cannot deny that he bears SOME of the blame for all the racial hostility in our nation.
      Meanwhile, Trump's statements that "I'm not a racist" are hollow and phony.  If he really wanted to prove it, he could start by canceling his Twitter account, where most of the hate and ineptitude originate.
      If the President was a Democrat and had said (or tweeted) these things, then without a doubt, our Republican toady friends would be tearing him/her apart every minute they are on the air.  Limbaugh, especially, is a disappointment because he has always boasted that he is the ultimate "truth-teller".  I used to actually believe that, and tuned in to his radio show for that very purpose.  But looking back, I see now that he was only a "truth-teller" when Democrats like Bill Clinton and Obama were in the White House.  Evidently, all bets are off when Republicans are in charge.  I find myself almost wishing that a Democrat wins the White House in 2020, if for no other reason than to force Limbaugh to start telling the truth again.
      When a politician - ANY politician - says something stupid, dishonest, hateful, or against the ideas that made America a great nation, then YES, the pundits need to call him/him out on it and tell it like it is.  But what we're seeing here from Trump supporters is a blatant double-standard.  When a Democrat does it, it's horrible!  But when a Republican does it, well, not only is it Ok, but we ENCOURAGE him to keep doing it!
      Meanwhile, what we really need in the White House is a true statesman:  a mature, eloquent diplomat who can unite us and inspire us all to reject hate and be the best that we can be.  And also be a staunch defender of free trade and minimal government.

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