Republicans are once again tripping over themselves trying to explain away the fact that their extremist rhetoric has radicalized people and led to violence. Whether it’s the loopy conspiracy theories of the MAGA right or the more tame “jokes” of moderate Republicans, they all seem to have difficulty grasping the facts.
According to the San Francisco Police Department and the FBI, a man spouting the same nonsense as the Republican Party and its leaders turned words into action, broke into Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s house, and fractured her husband’s skull with a hammer. Apparently, the conspiracy theories and minimizing began approximately three seconds after the hammer blow was struck.
It’s not surprising that a political movement built on macho chest-thumping, lies, and violence would lead someone to commit a heinous act. Of course rightwingers will always point out instances when people on the left have talked violently or carried out political attacks—the difference is that the left is not represented by a party that rallies around violence as a central tenet.
Not to mention, you don’t find nearly as many Democrats shooting and blowing things up as a way to get votes.