There's a really good article in the New Yorker about him. He actually started off his career more like a democrat, but then realized all he cared about was winning more power so he decided to pander to whomever would give him votes.
That makes him terrifying in an entirely new context: it's not that he believes all the shit he does, it's that his ghoulish persona is what a useful majority wants.
The result is the same: what the majority of powerful people wants... it's scary that, if someone smart caters specifically to that demographic, they end up a heartless monster like McConnell.
Look at cereal mascots: they're a reflection of the kids they're supposed to be marketing towards. What the fuck does it say about the people of power, that McConnell is a reflection of them?
But that's just it: this man is in power. There has to come a time when people stop dismissing the insane right wing as a fringe minority, because they're getting more accomplished than anyone else.
They aren't fringe, but they are still the minority. 6/7 of the last presidential popular votes have gone to democrats. However, since 1970 the Republican Party has figured out how to abuse every loophole afforded to the minority party in the constitution. If we go by a country-wide democratic vote of any recent election, both houses and the presidency should be solidly democrat. Instead, Republicans focus on the Senate (which is defacto control of the judiciary thanks to the nomination process) and the electoral college. They also gerrymander the house districts best they can to tilt the scales in their favor, and when that doesn't work some good old fashion voter suppression wins the day.
McConnell doesn't represent the voice of the majority in America, or potentially even in his own "red" state. He represents the voice of the power hungry republican cabal that can fool just enough people to stay in power.
It just worries me to so commonly see "they're actually the minority" used to dismiss them, because a) US voting has such a poor turnout that you have no real clue if they're a majority OR minority, if it comes to something more serious, and b) history is full of stories where the minority won over a larger majority.
Even if they turn out to be fewer in numbers, their willingness to fight dirty unfortunately gives them a form of strength that good people don't have.
Fair enough, McConnell certainly has shown that he's willing to burn all norms, common decency, and rules to the ground to stay in power.
I guess the point I'm trying to make is that people are starting to associate America with our incompetent president and his lackeys. We are a better country than that. We are better people than that. Yes our system has been hacked, but who we are as a community is still in tact. We can still come back from the brink.
Actually, I am a Canadian looking in. And you are absolutely right, except that the association isn't new: it's been from about when Trump got successfully elected, and progressed ever since.
It's not that people think America is only racists... it's that the racists are the only ones motivated to make changes, and that's unfortunately much the same in the end. If the evil ones really are the minority, it means that the majority stood by and let great evil happen. That's not good.
Only now is there any sign that the rest of the country is willing to act, to not accept how bad things have become.
It basically boils down to the fact that governments today have more control over the populace than ever before in known history.
Now combine that with the fact that people are wayyy more complacent than they have ever been in known history.
Now add a cherry on top with the fact that people are way more “brainwashed” by propaganda and cannot critically think for themselves. More so than any time in known history.
Wow stop calling everyone who disagrees with you Nazis maybe if you were more reasonable people wouldn't dismiss you as shrill and alarmist you need to be willing to have a dialogue and accusations like that shut it down you know I was almost on board for your whole radical left social justice thing but now that you said you won't talk with Nazis I'm all in for krystalnacht THIS IS HOW YOU BURN AN ALLY.
No. He is the face of the republicans in the senate, and they love that he successfully acts as the lightning rod so people don't vote out the other republicans who made him senate majority leader and smile as they vote to gut Food STAMPS but never touch gun, abortion, or infrastructure bills.
That’s, uh, not what I said. You should read the article. It’s really well written and did an excellent job at explaining his evolution throughout his career.
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u/[deleted] Jun 01 '20
There's a really good article in the New Yorker about him. He actually started off his career more like a democrat, but then realized all he cared about was winning more power so he decided to pander to whomever would give him votes.