Politicians often dare . . . too much.
But what did Rep. Ted Lieu dare to be last week?
Candace Owens’ appearance before the House Committee on the Judiciary caused quite a stir. The subject was hate crimes and white nationalism, and she offered a wider perspective: “We’re not talking enough about political hatred in this country, we’re not talking enough about conservative activists being attacked. . . .”
Needing to undermine that message, the Representative from California’s 33rd congressional district dared do the dirty deed.
“Of all the people the Republicans could have selected” to appear before the hearing, Rep. Lieu said, “they picked Candace Owens. I don’t know Miss Owens; I’m not going to characterize her. I’m going to let her own words do the talking.”
By now you’ve almost certainly listened to what he did*: play a 30-second clip from a long interview of the conservative activist then ask some other hearing invitee to explain how dangerous her statement was. The 30 seconds completely elided the original context, implying, absurdly, that the African-American activist was a supporter of Hitler and white nationalism.
Ms. Owens responded in justified high moral dudgeon. And Rep. Lieu came out looking . . . as Owens put it, “unbelievably dishonest.”
What was he thinking?
Scott Adams saw only two possibilities: “What Ted Lieu attempted (and failed) to do Candace Owens is not politics, it’s just despicable.” Lieu is either “one of the worst people who’s ever lived” or he is, in line with so many other #NeverTrumpers, “experiencing actual hysteria.”
Unfortunately, Washington partisans regularly make evil and insanity hard to distinguish.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
* “The most-watched C-Span Twitter video from a House hearing ever,” says Rush Limbaugh.
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6 replies on “In Lieu of Good Judgment”
Owens seems to be a fine conservative representative of the Clinton Effect in US politics.
At one time, a political figure who said something evil or stupid would run from his or her own words when confronted with them.
Clinton taught Owens to point right back at the people who call out the evil or stupid and blame them for noticing it.
She’s not even anything near the Clinton’s when it comes to deflecting. Are you dyslexia?
Theater is not what politics is supposed to be, but commonly is.
Rep. Lieu certainly knows better but prefers fiction as a part of his narrative regardless of its absolute absurdity.
Thankfully we had a constitutionally limited republic to trim the errant branches. Rep. Lieu needs to be pruned.
Owens is a fan of Infowars and a friend of Kanya West. You people are dumber than dirt!
No one should be smeared falsely. Not even if they are fans of Infowars or a friend of Kanye West or, heaven forbid, President Trump. Owens is not perfect or always correct politically, IMHO, but she spoke clearly to the words taken out of context and explained clearly what she was expressing at that hearing. She is not pro-Hitler.
Disagree with her. But my message is don’t disagree with a straw man look-alike and do not be “unbelievably dishonest” about her positions.
Forgot this link where she discusses the issue: https://youtu.be/J77YacAk_bE?t=125