(Thread) Bannon, MAGA, and all that GOP Lawbreaking
The latest:
Spoiler: All that GOP lawbreaking makes sense from the viewpoint of reactionist politics: They want to go back to the 1920s (or earlier) when there were almost no restrictions on white men.
The latest:
Spoiler: All that GOP lawbreaking makes sense from the viewpoint of reactionist politics: They want to go back to the 1920s (or earlier) when there were almost no restrictions on white men.
1/ “Again” in “MAGA” signals reactionism.
Political psychologists Capelos and Katsanidou define reactionism as “a forceful desire to return to the past.” onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.11…
They pine for the good old days when white men had almost unlimited personal freedom.
Political psychologists Capelos and Katsanidou define reactionism as “a forceful desire to return to the past.” onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.11…
They pine for the good old days when white men had almost unlimited personal freedom.
2/ You see, laws guaranteeing women and minority communities rights equal to white men are fairly recent.
For most of our history, we had slavery, Jim Crow, and women as chattel. Women or members of minority communities who succeeded did so rarely and against great obstacles.
For most of our history, we had slavery, Jim Crow, and women as chattel. Women or members of minority communities who succeeded did so rarely and against great obstacles.
3/ White men could basically grab whatever they wanted.
💠When the frontier was open, they could grab land.
💠Before modern rape and sexual harassment laws, they could grab women.
(For more on rape as a property crime, see:
)
💠When the frontier was open, they could grab land.
💠Before modern rape and sexual harassment laws, they could grab women.
(For more on rape as a property crime, see:
)
4/ Before the New Deal and regulatory agencies, they could cheat, manipulate markets, and fix prices.
🎶Those were the days🎶⤵️
When the frontier was open, white men who didn’t want to follow the rules had a place to go.
Take, for example, Donald Trump’s grandfather.
🎶Those were the days🎶⤵️
When the frontier was open, white men who didn’t want to follow the rules had a place to go.
Take, for example, Donald Trump’s grandfather.
5/ You know how the Trumps got rich, right?
DJT’s grandfather (an immigrant from Germany) went West and learned that “mining the miners” was more lucrative than mining for gold. He ran taverns and brothels and returned east with enough money to buy choice property in Queens.
DJT’s grandfather (an immigrant from Germany) went West and learned that “mining the miners” was more lucrative than mining for gold. He ran taverns and brothels and returned east with enough money to buy choice property in Queens.
6/ He had a premonition that Queens (then rural and sparsely populated) would see a building boom, but he died before he could build a real estate empire.
Fred Trump, DJT’s father, made a large fortune when he figured out how to cheat.
Fred Trump, DJT’s father, made a large fortune when he figured out how to cheat.
7/ Returning WWII soldiers were eligible for home loans under the new GI bill. There was thus a need for single family homes. The FHA offered building loans. The FHA allowed builders to recoup part of their expenses, so Fred set up shell equipment companies.
8/ He rented himself equipment at inflated prices and billed the government for tacked on expenses that never occurred. When he submitted costs, he added a 5% architect’s fee even though there was no architect.
9/ He submitted falsely high estimates, did the work for millions less, and pocketed the difference. When he was hauled before the Senate probe into public corruption, he escaped punishment because there were no specific laws against what he did (now there are).
10/ He partnered with ‘Willie” Tomasello, who in turn partnered with some of NY’s most powerful crime families, the Genovese and Gambino families. Through his mob connections, Fred secured masonry and other supplies at bargain prices. He paid laborers below minimum wage.
11/ His son, Donald Trump, laundered money for Russian mobsters. See: …
Then he cheated on his taxes: nytimes.com/interactive/20…
You see, Trump and men like him never actually added value. They took advantage of people and situations. They cheated.
Then he cheated on his taxes: nytimes.com/interactive/20…
You see, Trump and men like him never actually added value. They took advantage of people and situations. They cheated.
12/ They grabbed.
Then they strutted around as if they were superior when in fact, the laws that existed (1) kept women and minority communities from competing with them and (2) denied their victims any recourse.
The laws before the New Deal mostly maintained the hierarchy.
Then they strutted around as if they were superior when in fact, the laws that existed (1) kept women and minority communities from competing with them and (2) denied their victims any recourse.
The laws before the New Deal mostly maintained the hierarchy.
13/ The governing philosophy of 19th century America was a hierarchy with white men at the top and Black women at the bottom.
The doctrine of paternalism held that women and minority communities were better off under the dominion of white men.
The doctrine of paternalism held that women and minority communities were better off under the dominion of white men.
14/ The New Deal and modern civil rights legislation sought to create fairness and smash the 19th century patriarchy.
When Bannon said he wanted to wreck the “establishment" he meant laws and regulatory agencies that prevent white guys from grabbing.
nytimes.com/2018/03/09/wor…
When Bannon said he wanted to wreck the “establishment" he meant laws and regulatory agencies that prevent white guys from grabbing.
nytimes.com/2018/03/09/wor…
15/ Although America was founded as a liberal democracy⤵️ women and minorities were not included until fairly recently.
The theme of the Democratic convention is ‘we the people’ because the democratic idea is that laws should create equality, not maintain a hierarchy.
The theme of the Democratic convention is ‘we the people’ because the democratic idea is that laws should create equality, not maintain a hierarchy.
16/ When the GOP moans about the “deep state,” they also mean the laws and regulations that prevent them from grabbing.
I could fill a book with all the GOP lawbreaking during the past four years alone.
Heck, I could fill a book on the crimes of Trump’s 2016 campaign officials.
I could fill a book with all the GOP lawbreaking during the past four years alone.
Heck, I could fill a book on the crimes of Trump’s 2016 campaign officials.
17/ They’re breaking the laws that hem them in, laws they don’t think should exist. (For the GOP, "law and order" means "put Black men in jail and maintain the hierarchy.")
They want to take us back to the good old days when white men could literally grab whatever they wanted.
They want to take us back to the good old days when white men could literally grab whatever they wanted.
18/ For how to stop them, tune in to the DNC convention tonight, or replay Obama’s speech from last night. cnn.com/videos/politic…
This is a good point about how laws that maintain the hierarchy are self-fulfilling.
I combined this thread with the earlier one about the Bannon indictment into a single blog post here: terikanefield-blog.com/smashing-the-p…
