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Every single day since I became a Democrat eight weeks ago, I’ve been asked by shocked listeners, “Joe, why'd you become a Democrat? You're out of step with Dems on the issues.”
And this is always my answer:
Out of step? Well, I am out of step with my former political party, the Republican Party, on the basics...you know, things like democracy, freedom, pluralism, the rule of law, and basic human decency. Oh, and my former party is perfectly fine with being ruled by a tyrant. And I’m way out of step on that.
Now to be sure, I'm not where most Dems are on issues like Israel, guns, and government spending. But those differences don't matter much right now. Because my former party is such a real threat to democracy. And that's why I became a Democrat—to help defeat my former party and help preserve democracy. We can deal with the differences on issues later.
Trust me, this wasn’t an easy choice for me. It was the end of a years-long journey. First, while I was still a member in good standing, I did everything I could to help turn the GOP around, even launching a presidential primary challenge against Donald Trump in 2019. Then I made a go of it as an independent for a while, but eventually, I realized the only institution in a position to defeat MAGA is the Democratic Party—and it’s struggling mightily in its mission to defend democracy, freedom, pluralism, the rule of law, and basic human decency. So here I am, ready to help.
While I’ve been welcomed with open arms by so many of you, for which I am most grateful, I’d be lying if I said there weren’t some growing pains in trying to find my place in my new party. Here are a couple examples from just the last 24 hours.
After the horrific shooting in New York City, I had this to say:
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My new Democratic brothers and sisters were not big fans. Some accused me of “bothsidesing” the issue. Here’s a thoughtful response from one of you:
Joe, I love you and am SO glad you joined the Democratic Party, but I have to respectfully disagree with you on this. These mass shootings are horribly unique to America. There are no other “civilized” countries on the planet with the amount of gun deaths we have. NOT even close. When gun deaths are the number one killer of children, there should be a five-alarm fire, but this country has proven time and time again that guns are far more valuable than any of its citizens and the most vulnerable (our children).
We have more guns than people here. While MOST gun owners are responsible, it doesn’t take a whole lot of irresponsible gun owners in a country of roughly 350 million (with the amount of guns outnumbering them) to cause GREAT harm to OUR citizens. Weapons of war should be off the table for anyone but the military and S.W.A.T. teams. For guys that need to get their rocks off shooting them, maybe have them in a controlled environment like a gun range, where they can pay to use at that facility ONLY.
When the 2nd Amendment was written, it took minutes to load those long guns and pistols that could only fire a single shot. Laws did not keep up with technology. I’m not stupid or naive enough to think gun laws will save everyone, but stricter laws could spare some families—like Fred Gutenberg and the massive pain he’s gone through losing his beautiful daughter, Jamie, to a mass school shooting. I think it is 100% worth it to at least give a shit and try. —Marney
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From the tragic to the controversial, I expressed this opinion about the Sydney Sweeney “Good Jeans” ad campaign for American Eagle:
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I even got pushback from my own team on this one. Here’s an interesting counterpoint:
Joe, would they have made this commercial using anyone but a blonde-haired, blue-eyed white woman with big ****? The obvious implication is that the only “good genes” are those which she possesses.
Think about what this says to women who don’t look like her. Think about what this teaches young men.
Come on, Joe, think deeper. The Nazis used this same kind of propaganda to preach that the white race was superior to all others.
Imagine American Eagle using a flat-chested Black woman in this video. You can’t, because they wouldn’t have. This is eugenics light. They are using coded language and implications with a wink to suggest that blonde hair and blue eyes is BETTER.
That is WRONG, it’s RACIST, HARMFUL, and it’s WEAK-MINDED.
Here’s what young girls and women are contending with right now:
An adjudicated rapist was selected to be the President of the United States and is potentially getting away with being a pedophile as well.
Women’s rights are being rolled back decades, if not centuries.
An increasing segment of young men are supportive of taking away a woman’s right to vote and to make choices about her own body.
They’re now being told that if they don’t possess the traits that Sydney Sweeney does, they have bad genes. Yes, that is the implication.
What are we doing here, Joe? —Johnald Flump (yup, that’s the correct name!)
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So as you can see, I’m not quite in lockstep with the rest of my party. But I think that’s a good thing.
I think diversity—every kind of diversity, including of thought and ideas—is what makes us great. And it’s what the Democratic Party needs to survive and succeed. Other Americans who think like me need to be able to see themselves as a Democrat. That’s what representation is all about. What say you? Do you agree? Let me know.
This is important enough to me that I want to resume this conversation tomorrow. In my Midweek Meltdown, I’ll readdress these issues, along with your feedback. I look forward to hearing from you!
To be continued…
This Week
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