Republican senators and their mediocre factotums like Drew are gonna do what they’re gonna do, but it will be professional failure to pretend to believe them when they pretend to be mad about government officials making “disparaging comments” about members of the other party.
When I’ve said we need new discourse norms to ostracize bad-faith actors, I was thinking ahead to this moment. How journalists cover Republicans pretending to care about deficits, tweets, etc. will go far toward determining whether the sabotage they’re plotting “works” or not.
When this context is missing from news stories and updates about Republican opposition to Tanden’s nomination—indeed, when the stories about GOP opposition aren’t ABOUT this context—it rewards bad faith. Don’t do it!
It is impossible to report on these machinations informatively without making it clear that Portman is pretending to believe this, demonstrated by the fact that he helped whisk the founder of the House Freedom Caucus to confirmation as OMB director.
Republicans are concocting obstacles to Democratic governance out of spite or for sport, the evidence is there, there’s no reason to pass along the fake principles they cite uncritically.
I‘m not content to stop at marveling at the cynicism. Obviously the anti-Trump majority has to police its own, but @JohnCornyn is an unprincipled, dishonest person and he should be ostracized for gleefully rubbing his bad faith in our faces.
This is so, so much better:

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More from @brianbeutler

24 Nov
Can’t overstate how huge a failure it’ll be if reporters go right back to pretending to believe these people when they pretend to be mad about nonsense. ImageImageImageImage
It will, again, be an enormous failure if, after Trump, reporters covering nominations and appointments revert to pretending to believe Republicans when they pretend to have principled views about who should be allowed to staff the government. Image
It’ll fall to liberals and genuinely anti-Trump conservatives to police their own, but it’ll be an immense media failure if Republicans who pretend to have principled views about who should be allowed to staff (or lead!) the government aren’t laughed out of the room.
Read 4 tweets
21 Nov
A thought experiment: It is, alas, is EXTREMELY PLAUSIBLE that four years from now Trump will have won a rematch against Biden and we’ll be in the exact opposite situation. Imagine Biden tried to apply the new GOP precedent (no ascertainment, lawfare, lies) to that transition.
On one hand, that’d be wrong, and he wouldn’t do it. On the other hand it’s unacceptable for Dems to be bound by stricter norms than the other party. But on the other OTHER hand, Republicans would completely and shamelessly reverse themselves.
They’d use every tool of power available to them to get the transition started if Biden tried. They’ll sabotage a peaceful transition away from them then happily imprison anyone who sabotaged the transition to their own administration.
Read 6 tweets
20 Nov
.@SpeakerPelosi we don’t have weeks; subpoena her and make her exposure to criminal contempt of Congress charges by the incoming Justice Department for failing to comply explicit.
In what world is this substantively better or politically wiser than using power and to force Murphy’s hand—or at least trying first?
Read 6 tweets
19 Nov
The level of “nothing” House Democrats are doing about Trump trying to steal the election he lost, or else wreck the place on his way out, after spending two years telling us accountability comes only at the ballot box, is reprehensible.
This is what we’re witnessing now, except that “people” in this case include the leadership of the Democratic Party, and “the jewels” are the peaceful transition of power after a legitimate election. It’s appalling.
Read 4 tweets
17 Nov
Idk, here’s another pretty key quote, sourced to five people: “They said he has specifically told advisers that he is wary of federal tax investigations of Trump.”
You should also not want the incoming president to let it be known through informal channels that he wants his DOJ to turn a blind eye. Tweeting like a maniac isn’t the only mode available to a president.
I share this interpretation, both of what the NBC article means and what Biden’s focus should be. Would only add that a public-facing audit would be more “distracting” than DOJ investigations, and if Biden’s truly wary of the latter, he’ll be wary of the former. A troubling sign.
Read 7 tweets
17 Nov
To be a bit less coy, it’s been common in recent years for progressive ballot initiatives associated with Dem candidates to pass in states that simultaneously crush those Democrats. I think it cuts against the idea that some magic policy formula will save the party from itself.
Part of the reason is that candidates associated with a national party can’t replicate the depersonalized nature of a ballot initiative simply by campaigning on the policy.

Part of it is that the Republicans in those races just lie and say they also support Popular Policy X.
Maybe if Dems could impose a gag rule on electeds, aides, wonks, activists prohibiting them from advocating anything other than these initiatives, it’d work out great. But 1) that’s impossible and 2) it‘d alienate millions whose needs can’t be addressed by those policies alone.
Read 5 tweets

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