BRANDED — The Weekly Opine

Confirmed! (Photo credit 1000 Logos / The Weekly Opine)

Clowns in a demonic circus

If it seems they are trying to outdo one another, well, they are. It’s a race to the bottom that would make Captain Nemo, pilot of the submarine in the classic thriller “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” envious of the speed that congressional Republicans have initiated and implemented hijinks and chaos.

Among the many, Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), George Santos (R-N.Y.) and Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) stand out as having served notice that unapologetic ignorance and immaturity are indeed Republican “things.”

(The term “MAGA Republicans” may no longer be necessary, considering how many so-called “normal” Republicans seem happy to go along with the MAGA crowd. Or perhaps the “normies” are afraid not to go along with MAGAs kooks. Regardless, we are witnessing lowest common denominator stuff, maybe even lower than that.)

Former Arizona Cardinal head coach Dennis Green famously said, after his team blew a 20-point lead while losing to Chicago’s Bears, “They are who we thought they were!” Similarly, the MAGA’s who have taken over the Republican Party are proving to be who we thought they were; lowbrow and uncultivated. Check out recent evidence:

Most of us would agree this is a photo of the moon - in this case over Palm Springs, CA. Marjorie Taylor Greene would say it’s a Martian spy balloon. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)

The Queen of MAGA nonsense is Marjorie Taylor-Greene (she’s also the Queen of White trash and the Queen of QAnon). Greene, who fancies herself vice presidential material, absurdly complained last week about how difficult serving in Congress is. I do suppose following along with QAnon conspiracies must be taxing on one’s sensibilities. And losing sleep trying to come up with outlandish claims to curry favor and sell your soul to Trump would make any of us irritable.

Last week, when China’s infamous spy balloon drifted across America, Greene implored gun-toting citizens to shoot down the balloon. For someone who touts the virtues of any and all guns, Greene should know that bullets shot into the air come back down and can do harm. For example, several years ago in Northwest Indiana, some idiot celebrating July 4th fired a bullet into the sky. When the bullet came down it struck and killed a 13-year-old teenager who was playing basketball.

Greene, taking up space on high-profile House committees privy to sensitive intelligence, is an uncouth loudmouth. She has no clue intelligence officials assessed minimal threat from the balloon, subsequently gathering intel about the balloon before humiliating China by safely shooting it out of the sky.

And never forget – and don’t let her forget – this is the same Greene who said if she’d overseen the January 6 insurrection, she would have armed the rioters and they would have overthrown the U.S. government.

Pictured is a pencil tree at Moorten Botanical Garden in Palm Springs, CA. Marjorie Taylor Greene would tell you the tree should be cut down because it sheds #2 pencils used by students taking “woke” African-American courses that should be eliminated. (Photo credit The Weekly Opine)

Tripling down on her stupidity during a congressional hearing, Greene told the wild, sensational (and untrue) whopper that the state of Illinois rerouted $5.1 billion, earmarked for Covid-19 relief, to a single elementary school in Chicago. (In the same manner anyone offering testimony to Congress must swear to tell the truth, members of Congress should take a daily oath to speak the truth during floor speeches, interviews, etc. That would be a more useful commitment than reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.)

Marjorie Taylor Greene has become so infamous she’s referred to as MTG. I say add the letter “Q” since she is cozy with QAnon. Hell, add “Q+” since there’s a good chance she also dabbles in the NRA, the KKK, the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers. Yes, call her MTGQ+.

Dizzyland parade

As for MTGQ+ cohorts, they also reside in Dizzyland. Here are several examples:

Rep. Gaetz went on MSNBC and lied about not having a copy of the 3-page agreement letter GOP MAGAs forced onto hapless House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. MAGA Republicans, noted for railing about transparency, toss it aside when transparency becomes inconvenient.

Rep. Boebert gave an insane speech on the House floor stating Americans own only 46% of the world’s guns so, “boys and girls,” it’s time to increase gun ownership. (Stunningly, with just 4% of the world’s population, the U.S. does indeed own 46% of the world’s guns).

So much has been uncovered about the he-should-immediately-be-expelled Rep. Santos, including his pathological lies and apparent criminal activity, that sometime in the future he will likely need a get out of jail card. In a possibly unprecedented act this week, constituents from Santos’ district in New York State chartered buses and made the trip to Washington to demand that the House expel Santos.

Rep. Clyde, in typical Republican fashion, boasts like a tough guy and recently handed out assault rifle lapel pins that many of his Republican colleagues proudly wear. Then photos surfaced of him cowering in fear during the January 6 riot. Not surprisingly, Clyde is just another GOP crazy humbug.

On the left is Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.), one of a long line of shit-talking, chickenshit Trumpers who cowered on January 6. (Photo credit CNN screenshot)

The State of the GOP

President Biden’s State of the Union address was ostensibly a 2-hour political ad kicking off the 2024 campaign, regardless of who runs in either party. In addition to effectively touting his administration’s myriad accomplishments, Biden laid out a coherent path forward.

The effect of MAGA Republican fools booing and hissing and yelling “liar” was to cement the Republican brand as a composition of misfits, shady characters with no character, and mealy mouthed losers – led by Speaker McCarthy – content to accommodate the GOP’s attempt to undo America.

It was brilliant when Biden gave GOPers a choice; stand, as the whole country watched, and acknowledge that you won’t destroy Medicare and Social Security, or sit and admit you will. Republicans stood.

The rebranding of the Republican Party is now complete. The GOP is controlled by a group of dysfunctional, immature, insurrection-approving liars. It didn’t help Republicans that the biggest weakling in the history of the Speakership was prominently displayed the entire evening. Kevin McCarthy is the definition of a mouse of a man (translation, he’s a wuss).

I, for one, am happy the TV camera showed George Santos leaning along the aisle preening and groping like a star-struck teenager. If goofball idiots like Santos and MTGQ+ remain the epitome of today’s Republican Party, can the GOP epitaph be far behind?