By V. Susan Hutchinson
Hate and disrespect are now two cornerstones of the Republican Party. The pure, unadulterated hatred of all things Democratic, I believe, began with Donald Trump, who Tweets constantly about “fake news”, perfect phone calls and his enemies, of which he has many.
If any of his fellow Republicans or cabinet members fail to goosestep along behind him, they are enemies and must be destroyed at all costs through verbal assaults or dismissal.
Trump hatred knows no bounds.
Where did the blatant disrespect start? It started when Rep. Joe Wilson, from our own state of South Carolina, yelled “You lie!” at President Barack Obama during a 2009 speech. In Congress. The House reprimanded Wilson and he apologized, but as they say it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. Once it was out, there was no going back.
And now Republicans don’t apologize for anything. Ever.
Tom Rice Spreads Trump’s Lies and Disrespect
And then there are our members of Congress, Rep. Tom Rice of the 7th District, that well-known Trump lapdog, Sen. Lindsey Graham, and his junior partner in the Senate, Tim Scott.
Let’s start with Rice.
To see first-hand how much Rice is just another Trump lackey, sign up to get his Congressional Newsletter (paid for with tax money.) It’s usually a 2-for-1 in his communications; bootlicking Trump plus hateful rhetoric against the Democrats. The week after Trump’s acquittal and the State of the Union address, it was especially juicy. Rice invites the reader to buy into the lie that Trump is doing wonderful things and slyly slipped in a slam against the Democrats mid-paragraph.
The President’s message of optimism and accomplishments is truly something to celebrate. Our economy has reached a record high and opportunities for American workers are endless. While Speaker Pelosi’s actions showcased her childish behavior, President Trump and House Republicans remained strong and unified in their message. With better trade deals, strength in national security, and a fairer tax code, I expect our nation’s economy will continue to improve in 2020.
I won’t go into all the lies about how “great” the country is doing under Donald Trump because that is a whole other article. But let’s take that sentence about Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s childish behavior. Childish? With a toddler in chief in the White House?
Apparently Rice thinks Trump’s nicknames, like “shifty Schiff”, “sleepy Joe Biden”, “Howdy Doody (Pete Buttigieg)” and the infamous “crooked Hillary” are Presidential.
I’m surprised Rice didn’t refer to Pelosi by Trump’s nickname “Crazy Nancy” in his newsletter. Maybe next time.
Rice goes on to say about the impeachment:
“For the past five months, Democrats have wasted American tax dollars and time in another attempt to overturn the 2016 election. Meanwhile, much needed legislation on infrastructure, solutions to the rising prices of prescription drugs, and national security issues have been forgotten.”
To which I say what about Trump’s use of taxpayer money to foot the bill at his “luxury” resort in Florida so he can further abuse the emoluments clause of the Constitution?
It isn’t Democrats who can’t get over the 2016 election, it’s Trump who continually grinds about Hillary Clinton more than three years after the election.
And it’s Republicans who were focused on the impeachment, not the Democrats who were busy passing bills that went to the Senate where Republicans, led by Sen. Mitch McConnell, have left them collecting dust.
Tim Scott Is No Better
In response to a message I sent to Sen. Tim Scott about the impeachment vote, I got the following response:
It is imperative that the U.S. Congress not allow the Democrats or the media to taint the integrity of this investigation or Administration without due process. Impeachment is an action that should be undertaken with somber thought and responsibility. Unfortunately, it seems instead as though this inquiry is being used as a political tool by some of those in the House of Representatives.
The taint of the investigation comes from Trump and the Republicans who not only blocked key witnesses from testifying, they ranted and raved that what the Democrats were doing was illegal.
By all means let’s spew hate at the Democrats who want to follow the rule of law.
If anyone made the impeachment process a political tool, it was the yes men, like Scott who continue to support the lies and hatred of a president who is only out for his own personal gain and intent on staying in power with the willing assistance of the Republican party.
Lindsey Graham? There are No Words
And now we come to Sen. Lindsey Graham, perhaps not only the most hateful, but also the most hypocritical of any Republican that ever took office. Some use the word “sycophant” to describe him. I think that is incorrect, as it means “a person who acts obsequiously toward someone important to gain advantage.”
Graham doesn’t suck up to Trump to gain advantage, he does it to avoid being a Trump victim with a derogatory nickname.
Before the Senate vote on the 2 Articles of Impeachment against Trump, I sent Graham a message telling him to do right by our Constitution and remove Trump from office. I finally got a response the other day.
“I am glad the Senate soundly rejected impeachment. The allegations contained in this impeachment are not what the Founding Fathers had in mind as high crimes or misdemeanors. Our Founding Fathers, in my view, envisioned serious, criminal misconduct that would shake the foundation of the American constitutional system. This impeachment effort fell far short of that high standard.”
I’m so glad he’s glad. That statement in and of itself shows how much hatred he has toward the dirty Democrats who dared to hold his golden idol accountable.
Graham hatred continues as he vows retaliation for the man he worships. He said the Senate will “regret” what they did in the impeachment process. Yesterday Graham proudly announced that there is now a pipeline in place, intended to expose corruption by Joe and Hunter Biden in Ukraine, that goes from Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, to Attorney General William Barr.
Perfect call my eye! Graham has now openly approved of Trump digging up dirt on his potential rival in the November election.
When Will It End?
The hatred against Democrats for upholding their oath of office and attempting to implement Constitutional Democratic processes is growing. And no matter how many times Graham writes “As your United States Senator, my primary job is to understand and represent the interests of all South Carolinians” at the end of his emails, we all know that it’s a bold face lie. He wants to only represent people of South Carolina who, like him, pledge allegiance to Donald Trump.
Tom Rice can claim “It is a time for great optimism. THE BEST IS YET TO COME!” at the end of his newsletter, but we all know this, too, is fake sentiment and he, like Graham, feels he only represents Republicans of South Carolina, not everyone. So much for bipartisanship.
The Republican party has now become the party of hate, lies and disrespect for their fellow Democratic members of Congress and those of us who respect democracy and the rule of law.
It never used to be that way and if we don’t vote them out of office, we may never get love and respect back again.
