Tag: republicans
Mike Lawler

New York GOP Lawmaker Lustily Booed By Handpicked Town Hall Audience

In what is now a familiar scene, yet another GOP lawmaker got mercilessly booed and jeered by their own constituents at a town hall, facing a barrage of questions that all boiled down to one central theme: Why won’t Republicans stand up to President Donald Trump?

The latest victim of town-hall rage was Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, who held an event Sunday night in which he prescreened audience members to ensure they lived in his district, similar to what his Republican colleague Byron Donalds did in Florida last week.

Yet, despite Lawler’s efforts to keep out the supposed outside agitators whom Republicans have baselessly claimed are being paid by Democrats to incite scenes to embarrass GOP lawmakers, the prescreened attendees still took Lawler to task for not standing up to his party’s leader.

“What are you doing to stand in opposition to this administration, and what specifically are you doing that warrants the label ‘moderate’?” one constituent asked Lawler after laying out the ways Trump is hurting Americans, such as putting tariffs on all imports and deporting a two-year-old American citizen with cancer.

“My record speaks for itself,” Lawler replied, eliciting gasps and even laughter from the crowd. “I have been rated the fourth-most bipartisan for a reason, which is the very simple fact that, unlike many of my colleagues, I actually do work across the aisle.”

Lawler also got booed when he was defending Trump’s tariffs, with constituents chanting “blah, blah, blah” and drowning out his answer.

And in perhaps his most absurd answer, Lawler told voters not to believe that he’d vote to cut Medicaid, even though he voted earlier this month for the GOP budget blueprint that would require hundreds of billions in cuts to the lifesaving program that provides insurance to roughly 72 million Americans a year.

“When it comes to Medicaid, I have been very clear: I am not cutting benefits for any eligible recipient,” Lawler said, according to The New York Times, adding of the budget he voted for, “That is as good as the paper it’s written on.”

Lawler, for his part, is one of the most vulnerable Republicans in the House.

He's one of just three House Republicans who represent districts that Democrat Kamala Harris won at the presidential level. Harris received 49.9 percent of the vote in Lawler’s district, while Trump got 49.3 percent, according to data compiled by The Downballot.

Lawler is also mulling a bid for governor of New York, which may be an even tougher climb in a blue state where Trump is deeply unpopular. According to Civiqs’ tracking poll, just 34 percent of voters in New York approve of the job Trump is doing as president, as opposed to 62 percent who disapprove.

Because of his district’s partisanship, it’s not surprising that Lawler would face blowback.

However, GOP lawmakers are being met with enraged voters even in districts and states Trump won by large margins.

It’s a warning sign for Republicans, who will be facing strong headwinds in the 2026 midterm elections if Trump’s approval rating remains as abysmal as it is now. Even more concerning for Republicans is that Trump’s approval is this low before the impact of his tariffs have really hit voters, with experts warning that empty shelves and skyrocketing prices are expected to hit in May and June.

Early polling shows Democrats with an advantage on the generic congressional ballot, which asks voters which party they'd like to see control Congress.

A Fox News poll released Friday found that Democrats hold a lead on the generic congressional ballot by seven percentage points—a large margin that suggests a sizable Democratic victory in the midterms. The poll found that 49 percent of registered voters said they'd vote for a Democrat for Congress, while 42 percent said they'd vote for a Republican.

To put that in perspective, in 2018, when Democrats won control of the House, the final generic-ballot average had Democrats up by 7.3 points, according to RealClearPolitics.

"If the House GOP is under any illusions that Donald Trump's fall in the polls won't bring them down as well—well, they are living on fantasy island,” CNN polling analyst Harry Enten said, adding in a post on X, “Polls look like April ‘05 & '17, prior to big Dem midterm gains.”

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

Andy Ogles

Congressional Republicans Unite In Blustering Defense Of Hegseth

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is digging in after the latest bombshell report that he shared classified war plans in yet another Signal group chat—this time including his wife, brother, and personal attorney.

But instead of condemning Hegseth’s clear mishandling of sensitive military information, GOP lawmakers are circling the wagons, making the insane claim that Hegseth is being taken down by some sort of nefarious deep state within the Pentagon rather than his own bad decisions.

"The D.C. foreign policy establishment is getting desperate. They've tried to take out [Hegseth] twice. Everyone knows exactly what they're doing. It won't work. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I have full faith and confidence in his leadership," Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri wrote on X.

And Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee made a similarly absurd accusation.

“Deep State leakers inside the Pentagon are trying to sabotage [Hegseth]. They’re terrified of the bold, America-First reforms President Trump is delivering. The D.C. cartel is in full-blown panic mode. Their desperation says it all: we’re winning—and history will prove us right,” he wrote on X.

But those were far from the most ridiculous defenses of Hegseth.

Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin, a noted douchebag who berated teenage Senate pages for taking photos in the Capitol rotunda, said that Hegseth was above reproach because he served in the military after 9/11—as if that absolves him of any wrongdoing.

"I don’t want to hear from any healthy American that was of fighting age on 9/11 who did not join the military and deploy to combat talking shit about [Hegseth]. You had your chance to serve our Nation when She needed you and you did not. Stand down, the Warriors will take,” he wrote on X.

And Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, a Republican who helped push to get Hegseth confirmed despite his numerous scandals, also said that he’s sticking by the former Fox News host.

“I will lead the breach. I will lay down cover fire. I will take the high ground. I’ll expose myself to enemy fire to communicate. We must bring back integrity, focus, and put the Warfighter first inside DOD. I stand with [Hegseth],” he wrote on X.

Even the entire Republican cohort on the House Foreign Affairs Committee defended Hegseth,

“Pete Hegseth is a warfighter and he’s helping President Trump make sure our country is worthy of the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform,” they wrote on X.

Meanwhile, Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida tried to use whataboutism to defend Hegseth during an appearance on CNN, which—unsurprisingly—did not go well.

"Nobody was saying a word when Lloyd Austin, the previous defense secretary, disappeared for a month. Nobody could find him," Donalds deflected.

So far, only one Republican has called for Hegseth to resign: Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, one of the most vulnerable GOP lawmakers in the House who represents a district that Vice President Kamala Harris carried in 2024.

“The military should always pride itself on operational security. If the reports are true, the Secretary of Defense has failed at operational security, and that is unacceptable. If a Democrat did this we'd be demanding a scalp. I don't like hypocrisy. We should be Americans first when it comes to security,” he told Axios.

But don’t expect other Republicans to join Bacon anytime soon.

According to Politico, Republicans are afraid that calling for Hegseth to resign will get them on President Donald Trump’s bad side.

“Everyone knows he’s a joke, but he’s the guy to do pushups with the troops,” a former congressional aide toldPolitico. “Plus, not many want to publicly say anything right now and get on Trump’s bad side.”

Now that is the definition of cowardice.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

Republicans Sing Praise Of Trump Tariffs As Economy Spirals

Republicans Sing Praise Of Trump Tariffs As Economy Spirals

Republicans celebrated after President Donald Trump's half-baked "pause" on his "Liberation Day" tariffs led the stock market to rise, calling Trump a “genius” and his trade war debacle the “art of the deal.”

But those same Republicans had egg on their faces not even a day later, when the market once again plunged after investors realized that Trump's 90-day "pause" wasn't a pause at all, but rather a 10 percent tariff on nearly every country, as well as an insane 145 percent tariff on China.

"I think America needs to recognize we're in a remarkable moment. We have an actual genius of an entrepreneur and one that loves our country," GOP Rep. Burgess Owens of Utah wrote on X on Wednesday.

Owens did not amend his comment when the market tumbled not even 24 hours later, reflecting Trump’s chaotic tariff policy that amounts to a $4,000 tax hike on every U.S. household.

Not to be upstaged by Owens, GOP Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas—who once ridiculously claimed that Trump was the picture of health—posted on X that Trump is the “UNDISPUTED MASTER of the art of the deal!"

"The days of America being taken advantage of by China and other nations are OVER! The Trump era is all about POWER and WINNING!" he wrote.

According to the GOP, it’s considered “winning” when the stock market collapses just one day later.

Meanwhile, GOP Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona agreed "100%" with a batshit-crazy X post from creepy White House adviser Stephen Miller.

"You have been watching the greatest economic master strategy from an American President in history,” Miller wrote.

And GOP Rep. Mike Lawler of New York posted a graphic on Wednesday declaring that the “stock market posts third biggest gain in post-WWII history."

Too bad that gain was nearly erased one day later. Not to mention, the temporary gain didn't even make up what was lost after Trump’s “Liberation Day” anyway.

Similarly, GOP Rep. Nicole Malliotakis of New York wanted in on the action of praising Dear Leader, scrounging up one of Trump’s X posts from 2014.

"Deals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully or write poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals. That's how I get my kicks,” he wrote.

Also paying homage to Trump’s The Art of the Deal, GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida posted a meme calling the short-lived stock market boost the "art of the deal."

Meanwhile, other GOP lawmakers have tried to criticize the few Republicans who have stood against Trump’s tariffs.

"See? Trust the President. He understands trade and economics and NEGOTIATIONS better than his critics give him credit for. The critiques from certain Senate Republicans were premature, to say the least," Rep. Dan Crenshaw of Texas wrote on X.

The Republicans who have actually been right are those like Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who have said that tariffs are bad because they are a tax on consumers and will lead us to economic calamity.

“Tariffs raise the prices of goods and services. Even those who obstinately deny that basic fact will soon realize that the tariffs are a tax on the American people, whether while paying for groceries or looking at their investment portfolio,” Paul wrote in National Review op-ed.

You know things are bad when Democrats agree with Rand Paul.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

Does 'Hands Off' Mean Americans Have Started To Pay Attention?

Does 'Hands Off' Mean Americans Have Started To Pay Attention?

I’m not optimistic enough to call it the death of indifference, but recent events prove there may be signs of life in the democratic republic Americans call exceptional but too often take for granted.

Last weekend’s “Hands Off!” rallies have come and gone. And while it’s not known if they signal the start of a lasting movement, it’s hard to discount the crowds that gathered in big cities and small towns across the country, with protesters in countries such as Austria, Mexico, Canada and the Netherlands joining in solidarity.

While more than 100,000 protesters showed up in Washington, D.C., according to organizers, and close to that number in Boston, the hundreds in smaller cities such as Rock Hill, S.C., were just as impressive, considering how red and Republican that state reliably has been in recent elections.

Having lived in Arizona for a few years, I know the pride the people place in being unique individuals, and how much they hate anyone telling them what to do or how to live. So, I expected the state to have a particularly good showing. And it did.

According to Elon Musk, not a popular figure in weekend rallies, they, along with the rest, were paid “puppets.

All of them?

In my current swing-state home of North Carolina, I saw signs to match every cause in a Charlotte protest that despite humid, 88-degree weather drew thousands: “Protect Our Votes,” “No Kings” and “How can I be expected to send silly little emails during a hostile takeover by FASCIST NAZI OLIGARCHS,” which pretty much captured the sentiment of the day.

It’s true the city is a blue splotch in a purplish-red state, but thousands showed up and were plenty fed up.

That attitude extends to the state’s attorney general, Jeff Jackson, a Democrat, who is joining state officials across the country to sue the Trump administration over the federal government’s decision to cut more than $11 billion in health care funding.

That’s money states use to fund things like mental health services, addiction treatment and tracking the spread of infectious diseases, particularly bad timing when Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is providing uncertain leadership and confusing messages during a measles outbreak.

Did some of Saturday’s discontented perhaps choose to sit it out last November or vote for Donald Trump because the Democratic brand had become “toxic”? Possibly. But it was golf-playing, tariff-imposing Donald Trump and his sidekick, the job-killing, chainsaw-waving Elon Musk and his DOGE boys put in the hot seat by a wide cross section of Americans.

About that “toxic” label: Chief among those sharing that message and not providing much pushback to podcast guests Charlie Kirk, Steve Bannon and those following their election-denying, race-baiting lead has been California Gov. Gavin Newsom, whose political instincts seem to have abandoned him.

In Newsom’s quest for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, something he hasn’t owned up to, at least not yet, he is surrendering when the party base, according to polls, wants fighters, like Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey.

Booker’s recent attention-grabbing Senate speech was denigrated by Republicans as a stunt. Well, sure it was. But as he stood and talked about issues like health care and read letters from concerned voters, it was also a sign of life and resistance — with the added bonus of taking down the Senate’s former reigning champion talker, South Carolina’s Strom Thurmond, whose segregationist stand held the record for far too long.

As Trump’s disapproval numbers are rising almost as fast as the stock market is sinking, it’s clear that at least some Trump voters who may not be big fans of tariffs and the resulting high prices now declare that this is not what they voted for.

But wasn’t it candidate Trump who talked more about retribution than anything he would do to help voters’ lives? As president, as expected, it has taken him little time to return to the chaos of his first term, with guardrails off and loyalists in.

It’s all about the vengeance, even against Harriet Tubman, whose role as the most famous “conductor” on the Underground Railroad was downplayed on a recently changed National Park Service webpage. Apparently, the abolitionist and American hero’s prominence helping enslaved men, women and children escape bondage and travel north into freedom fit some twisted definition of DEI.

But the pushback that greeted the news, mostly from citizens who respect the truth and believe Americans can handle it, forced a restoration of respect for an icon.

Like many, I expected the Trump administration’s moves on immigration, the economy, national security, diversity programs — the list goes on; he had telegraphed each and every one. But the quickness of execution, the sometimes gleeful, sometimes fearful compliance by those who know better and the resignation of opponents who seemed to lack the energy or the will — that was surprising.

Maybe his actions finally came too close to home. But isn’t that often what it takes?

Americans are paying attention, and remembering that the only thing that stops a bully is someone, or a lot of people, standing up.

Reprinted with permission from Roll Call.

Shop our Store

Headlines

Editor's Blog

Corona Virus

Trending

World