GOP reversal on vaccines and boycott of Jan. 6 committee

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During the Obama presidency, there was a lot of criticism—perhaps justifiably—about "leading from behind" on foreign policy. So it's ironic, but no longer surprising, that Republican leaders in Washington by and large have chosen to lead from behind on the pandemic, even while American lives are threatened. Instead of vigorously supporting the science-based practices that would help us climb out of the pandemic—masking, distancing, taking the vaccines—they've undermined them at every turn, allowing the virus to continue spreading and the economy to suffer. The Trump Administration deserves some credit for the fast-tracked development of the vaccines. But they only work if people receive them. This week, the Delta variant appeared to jolt GOP leaders out of their partisan-driven obstinacy, as cases spread, particularly in red states with low vaccination rates. Perhaps they finally realized that leading from behind is a losing proposition for 2022. —Evan McMullin

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** Downie: The anti-vax hypocrisy
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"[R]ight-wing voices such as Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham have spread lie after lie about vaccination efforts. And Republican governors such as Kristi L. Noem (S.D.), Ron DeSantis (Fla.), and Mike Parson (Mo.) have encouraged 'personal responsibility' or sown fears about government efforts to vaccinate more Americans. Never mind that those governors got their shots months ago. Never mind that, according to some estimates, nearly half of South Dakotans have been infected, or that Florida's daily case average has quadrupled in the past month. The residents of their states will have to bear the risks, for the good of the governors' poll numbers." —James Downie in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

James Downie is the digital opinions editor at
The Washington Post.

MORE: Monica Potts: My community refuses to get vaccinated. Now Delta is here —The Atlantic ([link removed])


** Eady, Hjorth & Dinesen: Insurrection may haunt GOP for some time
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"The Capitol insurrection was one of the most remarkable examples of a violent attack on U.S. democratic institutions in recent times. And it seems to have pushed some portion of citizens away from identifying with the Republican Party, which has been affiliated with the insurrection. In other words, while political violence that violates democratic norms may hearten extreme partisans, it can also bring intra-partisan backlash or demobilization. ... [O]ur findings suggest that partisan violence has political costs, which might be underestimated by the politicians who court it." —Gregory Eady, Frederik Hjorth & Peter Thisted Dinesen in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

Gregory Eady is an assistant professor of political science, Frederik Hjorth is an associate professor of political science, and Peter Thisted Dinesen is a professor of political science, all at the University of Copenhagen.

MORE: Pelosi mulls adding more anti-Trump Republicans to Jan. 6 investigation —Politico ([link removed])


** Tribe: Garland's insurrection ruling and the future of democracy
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"If [Attorney General Merrick] Garland comes even close to suggesting that the elected head of the executive branch and those members of Congress so beholden to him that they will join him in his crusade to 'stop the steal,' as the president put it, are to be shielded by the Justice Department from liability—whether civil or criminal—for seeking to prevent Congress from peacefully certifying an election replacing that chief executive with a successor, our system of government will be in mortal peril." —Laurence Tribe in ([link removed]) The Boston Globe ([link removed])

Laurence Tribe is the Carl M. Loeb University Professor Emeritus of Constitutional Law at Harvard University and was the Justice Department's first head of the Office of Access to Justice.

MORE: FBI ignored tips on Brett Kavanaugh, Senate Democrats charge —Reuters ([link removed])


** Berman: The next step for infrastructure
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"As much as Biden would love Republican votes for the infrastructure plan, he wants the roads and bridges even more. If the GOP senators won't seal the deal they struck or dawdle too long in finishing it, Democrats are already planning to take the bipartisan infrastructure framework and add it to their own $3.5 trillion measure. That's the leverage [Senate Majority Leader Chuck] Schumer is using by forcing an early vote on the bipartisan proposal; Democrats don't want to repeat the mistake they made in President Barack Obama's first year in office, when they allowed Republicans to drag out negotiations over a healthcare bill for months and squandered the new president's political capital." —Russell Berman in ([link removed]) The Atlantic ([link removed])

Russell Berman is a staff writer at
The Atlantic covering politics.

MORE: Frustration builds as infrastructure talks drag —The Hill ([link removed])
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** Blow: The fate of democracy and the press are tied
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"Democracies cannot survive without a common set of facts and a vibrant press to ferret them out and present them. Our democracy is in terrible danger. The only way that lies can flourish as they now do is because the press has been diminished in both scale and stature. Lies advance when truth is in retreat. The founders understood the supreme value of the press, and that's why they protected it in the Constitution. No other industry can claim the same. But protection from abridgment is not protection from shrinkage or obsolescence. We are moving ever closer to a country where the corrupt can deal in the darkness with no fear of being exposed by the light." —Charles Blow in ([link removed]) The New York Times ([link removed])

Charles Blow is an opinion columnist at The New York Times.

MORE: Bill would strip social media of protections for health misinformation —The Wall Street Journal ([link removed])


** Sánchez: Young Cubans take on the fight for freedom
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"[Y]oung Cubans are not protesting solely against the pandemic curfews, the cut in commercial flights that allowed them to escape to another country, or the shops that accept only foreign currencies even though the people are paid in Cuban pesos. These protests are fueled by the desire for freedom, the hope of living in a country with opportunities, the fear of becoming the weak and silent shadows that their grandparents have become. These young Cubans don't want to be the grandchildren of a revolution that has aged so badly that Cubans are forced to risk their lives crossing the Florida Straits for a chance at a decent life." —Yoani Sánchez in ([link removed]) The New York Times ([link removed])

Yoani Sánchez is a journalist and an activist for freedom of expression in Cuba.

MORE: U.S. imposes Magnitsky sanctions against Cuban officials over protest crackdown —Axios ([link removed])


** Germer & Ramachandran: The problem with the election 'audits'
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"During every election cycle, election officials use processes designed to be transparent, objective, and secure—with safeguards in place to guard against human error and bias. In the instances when an external process audit is warranted, generally accepted auditing guidelines provide clear standards for ensuring objectivity and avoiding conflicts of interest. The efforts being undertaken in these states fail to meet these basic standards. They are not designed to maintain ballot or equipment security or obtain accurate results. They are designed to stoke mistrust in the 2020 election and in elections to come." —Matthew Germer & Gowri Ramachandran in ([link removed]) The Hill ([link removed])

Matthew Germer is an elections fellow at the R Street Institute. Gowri Ramachandran is counsel in the Brennan Center's Election Reform Program. They are co-authors of the report "Partisan Review Efforts in Five States."

MORE: Threats rattle Pennsylvania county targeted in election audit —KFGO ([link removed])
"While we must, by all available means, prevent the overthrow of the government, we should avoid planting and cultivating too many thorns in the bosom of society."
—Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States

I don't know if I agree with some of the letter-writers about a new party. I personally don't want to be part of a party again. Been there, done that. But since the system operates through parties, we should play a strong offense, not just defense. If Republicans want to subvert democracy, then let's subvert the GOP. I'd love to see some smart, gutsy candidates beholden to no one, especially not to "the former guy," run as Republicans. If a halfwit like Trump can take over a party, surely someone with charisma and actual principles can do it too, if not immediately, then maybe in time for 2024. —Carole L., New York
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** The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.
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