IdeaLog

Right wing “moon suit” narcissism

Posted on October 7, 2020

There is one overriding story in this election. Conservatives will do anything to hold power, and they just don’t care if people have to die to accomplish that. Emblematic of their narcissism, the Associated Press reported:

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said Monday that he’ll go to the Capitol “in a moon suit” to vote [for Amy Coney Barrett] if he’s still testing positive for the coronavirus, which has killed more than 209,000 Americans and infected millions.

By a “moon suit,” Johnson means that he would stay hermetically separate from other United States Senators while in the Capitol to vote for Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee. The same AP report includes similar sentiments from other conservatives:

There’s a long tradition of ill senators “being wheeled in to cast critical votes,” Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said on Fox News Channel.

and

Advisers to Republicans suggest any sick senators can simply vote from upstairs in the galleries overlooking the Senate floor.

So, their only health concern at all is infecting other Senators. But what about all other people in the world? There is not even a thought about their lives and health.

The three GOP Senators currently infected with COVID-19 are Johnson, Thom Tillis and Mike Lee. How are they going to get from Wisconsin, North Carolina and Utah, respectively, in “moon suits”? They’re not. Instead, they will infect drivers and staff while getting from their homes to the airport; they will infect airplane passengers and crew; they will infect more drivers and staff in Washington; they will infect domestic and service workers around their D.C. homes; and they will infect Capitol Police officers, security guards, elevator operators, and other employees at the Capitol complex.

And then, we know how this virus works. People who Johnson, Tillis and Lee infect will pass the disease to their families and coworkers. This vote will become a superspreader event, indiscriminately destroying lives.

And what about other Senators? Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) and Ben Sasse (R-NE) also attended the “Rose Garden Massacre” event for Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination, and most took off their masks. Seriously, how likely is it that none of them are infected?

Is there any modern-day conservative who cares whether you or your loved ones get sick or die? This has become the defining distinction between progressives and conservatives. It’s not just a lack of empathy. It’s not just a willingness to risk some while protecting their own. As Trump rallies have demonstrated, they will recklessly endanger anyone and everyone just to pursue their own perceived political interests.