America is in crisis mode. We have an invasion at our southern border, a president in severe mental decline who’s involved in a foreign influence-peddling scheme, skyrocketing inflation, a “rainbow” military, Democrats trying to “trans” children, and a federal government that’s weaponizing the legal system to target conservatives, interfere in elections, and collude with Big Tech to stifle free speech online, just to name a few examples.
With all of these major issues at the forefront of U.S. politics, surely congressional Republicans are using every tool at their disposal to confront them, right? Wrong.
Instead of tackling any of the aforementioned crises plaguing the country, House Republicans spent Friday colluding with Democrats to remove one of their GOP allies from Congress. In a 311-114 vote, the GOP-controlled House voted to expel Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., making him “the third member” removed from the lower chamber “since the Civil War.” the Justice Department previously indicted the New York Republican on charges related to identity theft, wire fraud, and other crimes earlier this year, but he has yet to be convicted.
As The Federalist’s Tristan Justice reported, 105 Republicans sided with Democrats in ousting Santos.
It’s perfectly rational to believe that Santos is an unethical guy who doesn’t deserve to be reelected. But what’s completely insane is Republicans — who control the House with a slim majority — giving floor time to Democrat priorities and expelling one of their own members from Congress. Rather than shoot down this ridiculous bid to expel Santos, here’s what Speaker Mike Johnson had to say before Friday’s vote:
“We’re going to allow people to vote their conscience.”
You know who wouldn’t be caught dead saying something that asinine about a vote to expel someone from his or her own party? Hakeem Jeffries, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, or any other Democrat serving in the halls of Congress.
Unlike Republicans, Democrats actually work to accomplish the will of their voters instead of indulging nonsense proposals championed by the opposition. Sure, Johnson and House GOP leadership voted against the measure to expel Santos. But the fact that it was even allowed to make it to the full floor for a vote is a disgrace in and of itself.
As mind-numbingly moronic as Friday’s vote is, it’s hardly the first time Republicans have gone out of their way to side with Democrats and ignore the priorities of their voters. Not long after Johnson was sworn in as speaker, for example, House Republicans surrendered on a major spending fight that gave Democrats pretty much everything they wanted while GOP voters got squat.
Meanwhile, Senate Republicans under the leadership of Mitch McConnell have colluded with Democrats to fund Biden’s tyrannical government, declare war on the institution of marriage and religious liberty, and target Second Amendment rights. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Republicans in the upper chamber are preparing to side with Democrats yet again to effectively kill Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s protest of the Pentagon’s unlawful and immoral abortion policy.
The harsh reality is that there is no legitimate opposition to the Democrat Party. The GOP is a Potemkin political entity built on the false perception that they actually give a rip about their voters and are willing to fight for conservative principles. When push comes to shove on the biggest issues of our time, they’re more than willing to waive the white flag before the battle’s even begun because they despise their voters just as much as Democrats do.
Establishment Republicans have perfected this facade, which is why they keep regurgitating the same “But look at how evil the Democrats are!” talking points every election cycle. They know conservatives will never vote for Democrats and are left with no other political alternative. It’s a hostage-like situation in which American restorationists are forced to hold their noses and vote for Republicans just to keep Democrats out of power.
Until conservatives learn to become active in GOP primaries and make them pay the electoral consequences for their failures, establishment Republicans will continue to sell out their voters on every issue that matters, when it matters.
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood
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