The senator made the comments in response to the DNC “love fest” during an appearance on CNN's “State of the Union.”
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said he isn’t buying all that Democratic “joy” on display at this past week’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago during a Sunday appearance with Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union.
During their conversation, Tapper brought up the “disciplined” and “well-produced” DNC this week that, as the journalist put it, “conveyed patriotism and unity.” Graham didn’t see it that way.
“Well, I didn’t see what you saw,” Graham told Tapper with a laugh. “If you’re a Republican, you saw a hate fest. You saw a hate fest full of insults.”
“Americans are not joyful when they go to the gas station and fill up their car,” he continued. “They’re not joyful when they make their mortgage payment. They’re not joyful when they go to the grocery store. People are hurting, and this whole joy love fest doesn’t exist in the real world.”
To bolster his claim, Graham pointed to the gas prices, the state of the border, and inflation during Donald Trump’s presidency when “the world was not on fire.”
He's either lying or what he said gives us a look into his shitty perspective of the world. Either way such a miserable and pathetic existence.
I think this is a great example of how a conservative mind views the world.
They are never happy or joyfull, its always a struggle and you fight for an idea despite you hating all of it. The idea that your life is not filled by misery is alien to them.
At this point being conservative is just akin to mental illness. Destructive, depressed, delusional to themselves and others. If ever there was a real social contaigion, it would be this state of being.
Maybe if you're Lindsey Graham. Pretending to be something you're not and constantly sucking up to people who hate you to keep your job sounds miserable enough.
The state of the border is due to Republican interference on that border bill specifically requested by Trump to keep it an issue this election, and Inflation performance was better overall when compared to other Western Nations during Biden's term and worse than during Trumps.
Happy can be had for the cost of a hobby, or of a friend buying another round, or jamming another game onto the screen.
But as J. D. Salinger said: "The fact is always obvious much too late, but the most singular difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is a solid and joy is a liquid."
Happiness needs a vessel of a certain shape and size.
Joy can fill up anything finite.
Don't mock Graham for this. He is expressing his sadness even if he doesn't see it. Express sorrow for his lack of understanding of our time here.
“Americans are not joyful when they go to the gas station and fill up their car,” he continued. “They’re not joyful when they make their mortgage payment. They’re not joyful when they go to the grocery store. People are hurting, and this whole joy love fest doesn’t exist in the real world.”
These are all great points, and he’s right! The problem is that the policies he and his party support are not helpful towards solving any of these issues.
Let me translate: The DNC was not joyful because it made MAGA fear and loath. He then pivots to project all this on the "American people" remembering that that's who he's supposed to care about.
Lindsey is a windsock; useful to see which way the wind is blowing.
Fucking asshole has the nerve to say the world wasn’t on fire during trumps presidency AND that trump is PRO-Life when he was perfectly ok with Covid as long as it was as gonna hurt cities and therefore Democrats more. Media motherfuckers need to start calling out this hypocrisy in real time.
My take is that statement is perhaps the most authentic thing he ever said in his life. He wouldn't recognise joy of it went up to him and kissed him on the mouth.
He must be bewildered seeing all that happy emotion.
Pretty much, anything he says can be dismissed with a subtle jerking-off motion.
Graham in 2016:
"I want you to use my words against me. If there’s a Republican president in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said let’s let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination."
Graham in 2020:
"I fully understand where President @realDonaldTrump is coming from. https://t.co/qlhtEwTCdX
As to my view of filling a Supreme Court vacancy in 2020, I’d encourage you to review these most recent statements.
You know, fuck Trump, fuck Graham, and fuck every Republican. But:
Americans are not joyful when they go to the gas station and fill up their car,” he continued. “They’re not joyful when they make their mortgage payment. They’re not joyful when they go to the grocery store. People are hurting, and this whole joy love fest doesn’t exist in the real world.”
Is perfectly accurate. I get that everyone is excited about Harris, but lying to ourselves about the economy makes us look out of touch, at best. Most of us can't afford a down payment on a house. Most of us are a few missed paychecks away from homelessness. Most of us are one bad doctor's appointment away from bankruptcy. Most of us are drowning in student loans. Republicans absolutely want to make all of those worse, but pretending everything is fine is bullshit.
I'm pretty doom and gloom but I still have joy in my life, so even if no one else does I'm proof it does exist. I would feel bad for Graham if he wasn't such a wretched creature
Denying your sexual identity leads to self-hatred and little joy. No surprise there.
Joy aside, Graham also addressed Donald Trump’s Friday comment via Truth Social that his “administration will be great for women and their reproductive rights.” A comment many found ironic.
I mean, it was basically an insult fest against the GoP lol. Not that I'm complaining; it just makes sense the Republicans are whining about it. Fucking hypocrites.
Last I checked, gas was about $3.03 where I'm at. Border crossings are lower than when Joe took office. And nobody was happy about their mortgage payments under trump either.
republiQan muckety-fucks: Goddam this Kamala/Walz ticket is knocking our dicks in the dirt! We’ve gotta send some messengers out to the talk shows, who do we got who isn’t facing trial for felony crime?
republuQan intern: Well, we have Lindsey Graham.
republiQan muckety-fucks: (sighs loudly, rubs eyes for a long time)
republuQan intern: . . . Sirs?
republiQan muckety-fucks: (a full sixty seconds later) . . . Fine. Send out Graham.