Many Republicans are deflecting blame exclusively to Trump, Hawley, and Cruz. No, they all own this.

Every Republican who supported Trump knowing damn well he was a threat to democracy should apologize and atone for their role in this.

And yes, that means lawmakers AND voters.
For the past 5 years, Republicans cheered on and defended downright depraved and authoritarian behavior. From separating migrant families to Charlottesville to Ukraine to assaults on peaceful protestors to thr election lies.

They can’t suddenly act like they had no part in this.
I wrote about it in this piece. When it comes to the GOP, their culpability in the radicalization of their base goes far beyond just the past five years.

This is the culmination of the Southern Strategy. They built this base. They own this extremism. independent.co.uk/voices/republi…
I include right-wing media figures in this too.

I also want to clarify that saying I want apologies and admissions of their lies doesn’t mean I don’t also want accountability. Anyone who committed crimes should be held accountable and those who enabled this should be voted out.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Ahmed Baba

Ahmed Baba Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @AhmedBaba_

11 Dec 20
To be a Republican right now is to put one man above your country.

It’s to be in total opposition to democracy itself, and specifically, one that allows Black people equal voting rights.

What we're seeing is an embrace of fascism. We can never let anyone whitewash this era.
This was not just another Republican President. This was not just a moment where "both sides” were polarized.

This is a moment where one side of the country, gaslit into a false reality by one man and his propagandists, turned against what America is supposed to stand for.
We can’t sugarcoat this. We can’t beat around it. We need to call this era what it was and hold the people who enabled it accountable.

These were people who shamelessly, disgustingly, abused their power and influence with complete disregard for the consequences of their actions.
Read 6 tweets
29 Nov 20
Every Trump lie of voter fraud has been disproven.

Every QAnon prediction has failed to come to fruition.

Despite this, millions of people still wait for the next drop, clinging on to the never-ending promise of an incoming revelation or "storm."

How do we break this spell?
I’ve been thinking about this a lot. I wonder if the best approach is the one used to get people out of cults.

It’s not to berate them or tell them they’re crazy, but to remind them of who they were before this. People who break out of cults usually have family pull them out.
I don’t like being simplistic and saying it’s racism so we can't reach out. It’s not just that. There are also good, non-racist people being misled by personalized disinfo bubbles on Facebook.

Maybe compassion really is the best approach? Just don't know how to do that at scale.
Read 4 tweets
5 Nov 20
I think people who are acting like the fact this race is close (electorally, not in the popular vote) because Dems failed to reach out to certain voters are underestimating the fact Trumpism is built entirely on disinformation & grievance.

There are bigger issues here to tackle.
Biden spoke to working families and struggling Americans. Trump's closing message was that COVID is over, Black people will invade your suburbs, & we should lock up his enemies.

Don't tell me this is a messaging issue. This is a cultural problem of warring values and realities.
We critique campaigns but dodge the uncomfortable fact that America has a crisis of decency & critical thinking.

We have a giant empathy gap and a shameless propaganda machine that upholds a fake, dark version of reality.

THAT is the problem. The question is how do we fix it?
Read 6 tweets
1 Nov 20
Trump's strategy has long been clear:

1) Lie about voter fraud in mail-in ballots.
2) Push base to vote in person.
3) Slow down mail so fewer ballots received by Nov 3.
4) Falsely declare victory on Nov 3.
5) Challenge ballots counted after Nov 3 in SCOTUS.

I think it'll fail.
Trump undermined this strategy by telling on himself.

He announced his USPS sabotage and why he appointed Barrett.

Dems responded with HUGE early turnout, getting mail ballots in early and voting in-person.

Wide Dem margins and/or early Biden red state leads would thwart this.
On top of that, the media won't play ball. In 2000, Gore had to deal with the perception he lost because the media reversed the Florida projection. That hung over his recount efforts.

That won't happen. Media and social media is prepared for Trump's false declaration of victory.
Read 8 tweets
17 Oct 20
While in Michigan, one week after radical right terrorists were arrested for plotting to kidnap and do an extrajudicial execution of Governor Whitmer, President Trump attacks Whitmer and then echos a “lock her up” chant.

This is vile, disgusting, authoritarian depravity.
Read 6 tweets
5 Oct 20
Saying “don’t be afraid of Covid” is the exact opposite of what he should be saying to the country right now. This man is reckless. After getting this virus he's taking it even less seriously. Absurd.
There is absolutely nothing that can happen to Donald Trump to make him have a moment of decency. Nothing.
Just because he has access to the best care in the country doesn’t mean the rest of America does. What a dangerous, foolish message to send to the Americans.
Read 5 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!