I don’t know that I agree that it was bait. They were working on that bill long before it became apparent that it wouldn’t pass.
Even if it was bait, it was a tacit agreement that the racist fearmongering from the right was true.
I do think it was good political strategy in the end, but it still advanced and legitimized the alarming eliminationist rhetoric coming from the maga camp
Do you know how much “legitimizing” something is worth in politics? Nothing. All politicians are masters at “legitimizing” whatever their voters want through cheap words. Actually doing something costs money and may piss off the wrong person, so they try to avoid that.
You can literally tell everyone placating things, “legitimizing” everyone’s opinion, and do nothing at the end of the day.
I don’t know that I agree that it was bait. They were working on that bill long before it became apparent that it wouldn’t pass.
Even if it was bait, it was a tacit agreement that the racist fearmongering from the right was true.
I do think it was good political strategy in the end, but it still advanced and legitimized the alarming eliminationist rhetoric coming from the maga camp
Do you know how much “legitimizing” something is worth in politics? Nothing. All politicians are masters at “legitimizing” whatever their voters want through cheap words. Actually doing something costs money and may piss off the wrong person, so they try to avoid that.
You can literally tell everyone placating things, “legitimizing” everyone’s opinion, and do nothing at the end of the day.
It doesn’t matter.