Rep. Cawthorn claims Speaker Pelosi cannot “bend the forest” and accuses her of “medical apartheid”
Without any real issues to complain about, the Republican Party has seized on the enormously irresponsible strategy of politicizing mask mandates, vaccination promotion, and otherwise undermining the efforts of public health officials in order to give themselves an excuse to grandstand and paint themselves as the defenders of “freedom.”
It is absolutely monstrous for them to be playing with public health like this for cheap political points, but it’s par for the course for the party that tries to strip healthcare away from tens of millions of people every time it weasels its way into power. What is equally surprising and astonishing is the level of dramatics that the right-wing is deploying to get their “point” across.
Rep. Madison Cawthorn, one of the more extreme members of the Sedition Caucus, exploded at Speaker Pelosi this morning, declaring that she was “not God” and does not “bend the forest” before accusing her of medical apartheid…all over a mask mandate.
GOP NC Rep Cawthorn tears into Pelosi over mask mandate. “You are not God. Your will does not bend the forest or shake the mountains.” Cawthorn accused Pelosi of “medical apartheid.” Questions whether the Spkr should have the prefix “honorable” attached to her title.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) July 30, 2021
This is an outrageous and absolutely absurd display of frantic hyperbole from Cawthorn, who himself endorse ideas and policies that would be very much at home in apartheid South Africa. While everyone enjoys a good flair of the poetic in a Congress that is usually boring and bland, this attention grab just comes across as childish and desperate.
It’s hard to fully convey just how grimly cynical and nihilistically destructive the right-wing’s anti-mask and anti-vaccine campaign is. 600,000 Americans have already died, thanks to the conservative efforts to keep the economy running and their pocketbooks continually growing. Now they’re turning it into some twisted perversion of a “personal freedom” crusade — and thanks to them, America is back to 2,000 deaths from COVID every day.
If only he would have as much concern for the lives of his voters and their families as he does for getting himself circulating on Twitter in video clips.
Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC), cosplaying as a Medieval Times diner: "Madam Speaker, you are not God … your will does not bow the knee of millions of my countrymen who refuse to heed your callous command."
He's accusing Speaker Pelosi of "medical apartheid" over mask mandate. pic.twitter.com/cyFt5B1aLq
— The Recount (@therecount) July 30, 2021
This is a staff report from former Occupy Democrats Editor in Chief Colin Taylor or contributor Rob Haffney.