The White House on Sunday blasted House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), arguing now is not a “time to perpetrate long-discredited conspiracy theories,” after the Louisiana Republ…
The White House on Sunday blasted House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), arguing now is not a “time to perpetrate long-discredited conspiracy theories,” after the Louisiana Republican refused to answer whether the 2020 election was stolen when pressed several times on ABC News’s “This Week.”
“Election denial is a dangerous conspiracy theory that has done unprecedented harm to the country and has been comprehensively debunked by over 80 federal judges, as well as the Trump Administration’s national security officials,” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates wrote in a statement Sunday.
Reiterating President Biden’s call for Republicans and Democrats in Congress to work together in good faith, Bates said now “is not a time to perpetuate long-discredited conspiracy theories that fueled an assault on the Capitol and [tears] Americans apart,” in reference to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection.
I mean, in all fairness, the ultimate effect of the rhetoric was twofold: it galvanized the Trumpian true believers (like Christians crying "persecution!"), and it convinced many Republicans in general to stop voting.
I would argue that the faithful can't really be galvanized further, so the only effect it would have this time is to increase the number of Republicans who think it's not worth voting anymore.
Actually, it's a lot more likely to make people more extreme. If people don't believe in the system, they're more willing to tear it down and resort to violence.
And not surprisingly that is what appears to be happening. It would appear that Scalise has chosen and continues to choose to be part of Team Insurrection and needs to be investigated, and charged as such.
I really don't think many of them believe their own bullshit enough to risk their own lives over it. As a result, I believe we will continue to see occasional domestic terrorism events but no organization in larger numbers than Jan 6.