E.J. Dionne Jr. on the new Culture War, because the Right needs to hate something in order to exist:
House Republicans were able to pass without much difficulty a remarkably restrictive bill that would overturn Obama’s executive actions on immigration. It was aimed not only at his measures to keep families together but also at a highly popular provision for the “Dreamers” brought to the United States as children.
This is the new culture war. It is about national identity rather than religion and “transcendent authority.” It focuses on which groups the United States will formally admit to residence and citizenship. It asks the same question as the old culture war: “Who are we?” But the earlier query was primarily about how we define ourselves morally. The new question is about how we define ourselves ethnically, racially and linguistically. It is, in truth, one of the oldest questions in our history, going back to our earliest immigration battles of the 1840s and 1850s.
So we must hate the brown people. Check. Hating brown people goes hand in hand with hating Muslims.
Dean Obeidallah expects Islamaphobia to be the GOP’s new fearmongering motivator now that the Right has lost so decisively on gay marriage:
First, Muslims are a small percentage of our nation’s population at approximately 1 to 2 percent. Second, there are horrible Muslims who do commit terror in the name of our faith, which does offer cover for anti-Muslim bigotry. Third, we still don’t have many allies outside of our community that stand with us. Sure, we have some interfaith supporters. But when anti-gay comments are made, like in the case of “Duck Dynasty’s” Phil Roberson in 2013, the response by the left was swift and united. But with anti-Muslim bigotry, we don’t see that. …
My hope is that I’m wrong. But after seeing close to a thousand people over the weekend protesting a Muslim-American event in Texas that was ironically organized to counter extremism, I’m not so optimistic. The more conservative parts of the GOP base tend to vote in higher numbers in the primaries. So don’t be surprised when you see Republican candidates trying to get their attention with this cut of red meat.
George Zornick at The Nation blasts our new neighboring Republican governor of Maryland, Larry Hogan, a supposed moderate, who wasted no time after taking office in gutting Maryland’s Environmental and LGBT Protections.
But Hogan’s first days in office are proving to be anything but moderate. Rather, a familiar storyline is playing out: the friendly Republican gubernatorial candidate suddenly becomes a hardline conservative governor.
After being introduced by New Jersey Chris Christie at his inauguration Wednesday as someone “who knows how to bring people together,” and after the VIP guests dined on shrimp scampi, crab cakes and grilled chicken, Hogan got to work: he immediately rescinded blockbuster environmental regulations on state coal plants and pollution of the Chesapeake Bay. He also called back regulations designed to protect LGBT Marylanders from healthcare and employment discrimination.
To all the voters who stayed home in November 2014, I say again, and always, go fuck yourself. I don’t care if you were not inspired to vote. It is your duty to prevent Republicans from getting into office. You failed. Horribly. And now, for the next four years in Maryland, I hope you suffer. Well, there is no hoping about it. You will suffer, because a Republican is your Governor.
At The Crystal Ball Alan I. Abramowitz explains why “the president’s rising approval rating in recent polls is good news for Hillary Clinton or whomever the Democratic Party eventually chooses as its nominee.” The latest Gallup has the President at 50% approval, 45% disapproval.
Whenever I see a news story that references a state-run news agency in a foreign country, like Russia, for example, or North Korea, the adjective “state-run” is always a pejorative, indicating to the reader that the news or quote you are about to read is not to be trusted, because it is coming directly from the suspect government in question, a government that is so distrustful of an independent media and the freedom of press and speech that it has set up its own propaganda arm.
Keep that in mind when you read that Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, of course a Republican, is setting up his own state-run news agency. The agency will be called “Just IN” will provide pre-written stories for small Indiana news outlets on breaking news as well as “personality driven profiles.” Stories will be written by the Pence administration’s communications team. Yes, this is a valuable use of taxpayer money. I wonder which child’s education was cut to pay for the Republican propaganda?