Randolph Linn is a 52 year old truck driver from St. Joseph, Indiana who passed by an Islamic Center somewhat often during his work. One day, in the process of drinking 45 beers in seven hours, he was convinced by watching Fox News that all Muslims are terrorists. He set off for the Islamic Center with a loaded revolver, he went inside, and he lit a fire in one of their prayer rooms. He was arrested.
Of course, the probable Republican spin doctor’s response to this will be to blame the beer rather than the propaganda this man was subjected to. He was drunk, which is a little like being mentally ill or having Asperger’s Syndrome.
But how do we explain Erick Erickson’s truthful observation that last night the House Republicans proved that they are “more loyal to the Americans for Tax Reform pledge than Americans for Tax Reform itself is”? Grover Norquist gave them a pass to vote on John Boehner’s Plan B bill, and they took a pass on the pass.
Can we safely say that the majority of the House Republican caucus has been so indoctrinated into their own propaganda that they no longer realize that it is just bullshit designed to help rich people get their way? Do they all now actually believe that raising taxes reduces revenues? Do they believe that increasing income inequality increases consumer demand and promotes economic growth? Do they actually believe that government spending doesn’t create any jobs even when the government is paying people to work?
With the likely exception of their Speaker, the House Republicans can’t point to their blood-alcohol level as an excuse.
The debate about chained CPI is important, but it seems small and tangential after last night’s mutiny. It should be clearer now that the biggest problem facing the country is not the budget deficit or the strength or generosity of our entitlement programs. The biggest problem is that your average elected Republican is just as susceptible to Fox News right-wing bullshit as Randolph Winn was when he lit an Islamic Center on fire because he had been watching Fox News and got “riled up.”
It is extremely dangerous to have a party this detached from reality.