The Iconoclastic GOP Sucks at Politics

This Week in PurpleAmerica (1/27-2/2); Groundhog Day! Valentines Day! Taylor Swift!

The Iconoclastic GOP. It’s something I never thought I’d write, but its where they are. It seems like anything that starts to gather mainstream culture, they have to rail against. I’m a Gen Xer, I get it. Hell, its my whole teenage upbringing mindset. Yet it’s not exactly the way you win in politics. The goal of politics is to appeal to the MOST people, not seem like the rebel. It’s the popular class nerds and go-getters that win elections, not the potential drop outs and erratic social misfits (although occassionally a class clown wins as a joke as in 2016). The GOP don’t even make cool rebels that others would want to emulate; they’re like Crazy Uncles, Obnoxious Bros, Gun Toting Grannys at Walmart and the Dumb hillbilly crowd that all just complain about everything. This works well on Fox News but as a political movement seems counterproductive.

I mean, just look at who they’ve decided to go to war against the last three years:

• Bud Light— Biggest beer on the market at the time.

• Target— One of the largest retailers in the country.

• Vaccinations— Things that save lives and have been universally praised since Edward Jenner and Louis Pasteur.

• Disney— The largest entertainment conglomerate on the planet and single largest provider of childrens programming since Mother Goose.

• Taylor Swift— The single biggest entertainer on the planet at the moment.

• Currently, peripherally to the above, Travis Kelce, the current Super Bowl Champions Kansas City Chiefs and the NFL, of which 93 of the highest 100 shows last year were NFL football games, and the highest among those were Chiefs games.

Going to war with these people and groups is just not smart politics. At all. Iconoclism has rarely been effective in politics; co-opting, mainstreaming, astroturfing, association and inclusion all are. That’s why politicians always seem so fake and phoney. Instead, the GOP harps at the windmills over an issue and then screams at them to try and make a point. Does it work? Of course not. People like Taylor Swift more than your crazy Uncle. They love football more than some obnoxious tech bro.¹ They rear their kids on Disney films and not your gun toting grandma. Why do Republicans even try to make this stupid argument?

Personally, I find the Taylor Swift-Kelce thing fine. It’s a little offputting sometimes to see the attention she gets in the box at KC games instead of the action on the field, but I get it, and the NFL is fine with the uptick in women watching games this year. I wish them the best with what looks like a good relationship. In my own capacity, I do the same thing as the NFL sometimes reposting over and over again stories that included Taylor Swift in the past (you’d be amazed how repetitive the stupidity of these people are—rather than fight back, I just repost the same articles) and I always see an uptick in engagements. So for me to look down on the NFL would be completely hypocritical anyways. Fox does it too just so they can put Taylor Swift in a headline. So really, what is it that FOX News and the right has so much trouble with here?

Colin Cowherd nailed it perfectly in this video. I am jealous of how well he described and articulated the stupidity of this moment. Some of this is related to being just a genuine worry that an incredibly powerful woman with a dedicated fan base and brand loyalty will come out against the person these people want for President. The kicker is that she doesn’t have to say anything about it; if she’s being treated like this by MAGA nation, how would anyone in that instance react? Everyone already knows what she thinks about Trump and Biden— she said it in 2020.

Getting back to the main point, if you want to succeed in politics, its about addition, not subtraction. The more the GOP becomes engulfed and personified by nothing but blowhards and opposed to everything (including a border bill that gives them everything they actually wanted, just because Trump wants it to fail so he can continue to say the border is a mess) the more their defeat is all but assured. They aren’t serious politicians or trying to accomplish anything; they’re the trolls and poseurs in internet comment boards who never have anything good to say about anything. They should be relegated to the electoral trash heap of history, as all groups that no longer care about doing the work of the people end up.

PurpleAmerica’s People of the Past Week

The Good

Bulwark founder and media personality Charlie Sykes announced he was leaving The Bulwark this week. We here at PurpleAmerica have praised the work he and the members of the Bulwark have done numerous times, including this one where we compared him to Walter Cronkite. Take a bow Charlie, you’ve earned it. And we at PA are completely humbled when he accepts our praise.

We’re always ones for generally humorous things that make the banality of life miserable. In Minnesota, that’s often winters, but this year hasn’t actually been all that bad.² Nonetheless, they have named their new Snow Plows and the results are *Chefs Kiss*

The Bad

Joe Biden this past week said he would sign a border bill full of major concessions to Republicans, without any Democratic policy initiatives such as appeals to Dreamers. He is literally giving them everything they have wanted for years. Taking instructions from Donald Trump, they declined, largely so they can say the border is a mess. ³Here’s a tip GOP, if you want to fix things and get items you want, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

The Ugly

This past week, stories circulated on the right that U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar (MN) made treasonous statements while speaking before a crowd of Somali-American citizens in her district. Since the relevant part was in Somali, this interpretation was based on a translation. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (MN) and Marjorie Taylor Greene called on her to resign. However, independent sources corrobrated that the right wing meme was in fact inaccurate and intended to mislead. A breakdown of the two interpretations are below:

We are PurpleAmerica are not huge fans of Omar or the squad but this kind of false and deceptive politics are the kind of thing we genuinely disapprove of, no matter who does it.

Speaking of the squad, it was discovered this week that left wing House Democrat Jamaal Bowman wrote 9/11 conspiracy based “poetry” before becoming a US Representative. Atrocious.

Have a nominee for us to consider? Send an email to purpleamericanunity@gmail.com!

PurpleAmerica Pop Culture Random Top Five

This week: The Top 5 Things About February

5. It’s short. Springs right around the corner.

4. Leap Year. Hard not to like something that only comes around once every 4 years.

3. President’s Day. Day off and you get to replay that classic Simpsons Episode with the “We are the Mediocre Presidents” song.

2. Valentine’s Day. Who doesn’t like “Love” oriented shit?

1. Super Bowl Sunday. Yes, its better than Valentine’s Day. Period.

PurpleAmerica’s Subscriber Mail

When we here at PurpleAmerica Respond to the Teeming Millions (well, we’re still working on that first million)

You’re just another right wing misogynist troll. I can’t believe you are so triggered over Barbie. It was such a great movie! Take a woman’s study course and you’ll understand how patriarchial all our society is. I expected more from you than to be threatened by a doll.

—BerkeleyBecks

Dear UberSocialist Sorority Rebecca,

Shows how much you know:

• I am no longer in college but DID take women’s studies courses; they were requirements to graduate. They have been for a very long time.

• Barbie was not a good movie. To make my point, a mere 2 years ago, Barbie was the epitome of the female stereotype that you and many feminists pointed to as causing young girls to feel insecure about their looks and figure. But you make a movie, put Margot Robbie in the lead role, completely detatch it from the way people have looked at it over 50 years, give America Ferrera a pro-girl power speech and you’re witness to one of the biggest toy updates and rebrandings ever. And you bought it. Because you WANT to believe it all.

• Your idea of patriarchy is outdated. And lame. And as stereotypical as the ridiculousness of the Ken plot in the Barbie movie. The Mattel Board even happens to be 50/50 male/female. Just because you believe a depiction and have this image in your head of the way things are doesn’t make it correct.

• I can tell you didn’t read any of my piece; I literally made the case Greta Gerwig deserved a Best Director nomination.

• Misogynist Troll? It’s not like I was saying Ken was a pu**y wimp who should have been replaced by GI Joe, although that would make a much more interesting movie. Not to mention, it seems you were the one who felt necessary to troll my site with your post.

• I’m regularly threatened by Chucky.

Sincerely,

Mr. Paging Dr. Oppenheimer to nuke this discussion right now.

Have a question you want us to answer? Email us at purpleamericanunity@gmail.com

PurpleAmerica’s Historical Note from This Week

Today marks the 134th anniversary of Punxatawny Phil predicting the start of Spring. In fact, by the time you read this, he may have already determined whether Spring was here or we have 6 more weeks of winter. What has he selected in the past?

So it’s rare that he actually picks Spring has arrived. But how accurate is he? Well…

PurpleAmerica’s Dad/Uncle/Cheesy Joke of the Week

Q: Who always has a date for Valentine’s Day?

A: The Calendar

And with that…

Like what you are seeing here at PurpleAmerica? Share and Comment. Let your friends and family know! Repost on Twitter and Threads. Forward us topics you’d like us to discuss! It’s an open community here.

Footnotes and Fun Stuff

1. That’s what’s funny particularly about this. The team of the tech bros are the SF 49ers who are playing the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Instead of making a case and hyping up their team, which is a great team, fun to watch and overall a net positive for them, they are trying to argue a proxy fight between themselves and Taylor Swift(?) No offense Silicon Valley, that’s a fight you’re likely to lose. I explain why here:

2. This week, the temperature hit the 60s in Minnesota.

3. Because of their own doing.