Extreme idiocy

I've talked ad nauseum about the far left radical policies that emerged from this most recent Minnesota legislative session that there really isn't a lot more to say on the substance of these new laws. However, now is a good time for right-of-center activists to focus on helping wrest control of House from the DFL next year. 

In the aftermath of this year's legislative session, I remarked that the DFL and their well-funded PACs no longer have any moral authority to label GOP candidates as "extreme" given the buffet of legislative lunacy that the Dems pushed through this year. Oh sure, they'll continue to trot out that rhetoric, but any Republican candidate should be able to easily swat that away.

• "Wait, you voted for killing a child until literally moments before birth, but *I* am the one who's extreme?!?!?"
• "This state had a near $18 billion budget surplus and not only did you vote to spend every penny, you also voted to increase taxes and fee in other areas. Oh, but *I'm* outta touch?!?!?"
• "Say, didn't you support legislation discriminating against institutions' constitutionally protected right to freely exercise their religion?!?! Yeah? And that's *not* fringe behavior?"
• "Given your vote on declaring Minnesota a 'sanctuary state' for trans youth, you must be OK with custodial parents having no say in the life-altering decisions their literal kids are about to make. Tell me how that's *not* extreme."

You get the idea. 

So going forward, all anyone associated with the MNGOP has to do is not behave in a crazy, ill-advised manner so as to bring unwanted attention onto the party. Simple enough, right?

Yeah, if you've paid even the slightest bit of attention to the party over the past dozen years or so, that's a pretty big ask. 

A GOP state senator and county chapters of the state Republican party have shared their support on social media for the Scott County Republicans’ Facebook post comparing President Joe Biden to murderous tyrants Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin and Mao Zedong.

They are doing so in defiance of the state party, which denounced the comparison.

On June 10, the Scott County GOP posted on Facebook a meme with pictures of the dictators and Biden, under the words “Leaders who have their political opponents arrested.” The meme is an apparent reference to a grand jury indicting former President Donald Trump last week on charges relating to the mishandling of classified documents after leaving office and obstructing the government’s efforts to get them back.

Since the indictment, Republicans, including Minnesota congressmen Tom Emmer and Pete Stauber, have accused Biden — with no evidence — of weaponizing the U.S. Department of Justice against Trump.

The Republican Party of Minnesota called the Scott County GOP meme “uncalled for” and said “such rhetoric has no place in our political discourse.” The state party asked the Scott County Republicans to take down the post.

Eight minutes after the MN GOP post, Sen. Nathan Wesenberg, R-Little Falls, on his Facebook page posted the meme, with some passive-aggressive commentary.

“Apparently some people have problems with facts,” Wesenberg said in the post. Wesenberg declined to comment to the Reformer.

The one aspect of this story to which I take exception is lumping in Congressmen Tom Emmer and Pete Stauber with this group. As two people who witnessed firsthand the "Russia collusion" hoax, they surmise there's ample rationale that the DOJ is being weaponized despite this latest indictment of Trump looking as though it has teeth (again, multiple things can be true). But unless Reps. Emmer and Stauber also invoked Hitler et al, simple speculation on the DOJ's motivations here is not necessarily out of bounds. 

With the state of Minnesota teetering on the brink of becoming a cold California, any activity that repels potential new supporters is a veritable suicide pact. Now, I'm not all suggesting that elected Republicans or party officials need to lurch leftward. However, it would seem to be an obvious point that comparing political opposites to murderous dictators will do absolutely nothing to advance the center-right cause. The only thing such tactics accomplish is allowing the legitimately extreme elements of the party to partake in gnawing on political red meat. Like it or not, those people being the face of the MNGOP will ensure perpetual minority status. 

There's not a lotta time left to continue to recover from making these unforced errors. 

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