RNC Chair: Hamas Horrific Attack is an “Opportunity”

……GOP’s craven misinformation and lying knows no bottom

With each passing day the atrocities committed by Hamas in its attack on Israel last weekend are exposed as more and more horrific. President Biden condemned the attack in no uncertain terms and pledged that “…we stand with Israel…In this moment, we must be crystal clear. ... The United States has Israel's back. We will make sure the Jewish and democratic state of Israel can defend itself today, tomorrow — as we always have.”

Meanwhile the chair of the Republican National Committee shared some thoughts with FOX “news.”

“I think this is a great opportunity for our candidates to contrast where Republicans have stood with Israel, time and time again, and Joe Biden has been weak. And when America is weak, the world is less safe. We’re seeing this not just with the war in Ukraine and with an emboldened China, but now with an attack on Israel.” – Ronna (Romney) McDaniel on Fox “news”

She set the tone for her party…

• Tim Scott, the pious SC Senator running for President, lied outrageously, saying “Joe Biden funded these attacks”; he was joined by…

• Ohio Senator JD Vance who also pulled a lie from his nether regions, claiming that “Americans must face a stark truth: our tax dollars funded this”; and not to be outdone,

• …Trump stumbled over his version of this lie, saying somewhat inarticulately: “Sadly, American taxpayer dollars helped fund these attacks, which many reports are saying come from the Biden administration.”

I assume that their lies had roots in the recent unfreezing of $6 billion of Iranian oil revenues now held in a restricted Qatari bank account  – to be accessed only for food and medicine – in return for the release of five Americans who had been held in Iranian jails since 2015. Note that even if one were to buy Scott’s charge that “Biden funded” the attacks by releasing this money, the leap to this being “American tax dollars” is a flat out lie. Also note that none of these funds have even been accessed yet. And that Iran hardly needed these funds to provide the ongoing support it has been giving to Hamas.

But it makes a juicy talking point for the MAGA Republicans.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken was clear in his interview with Dana Bash on CNN when he said those making these claims are "either misinformed or they're misinforming." He was too kind with his “either…or”; it was unabashed and intentional misinforming.

The GOP is now “Mis-Informants ‘R Us.” As Noah Berlatsky writes:

“GOP leaders almost certainly know that the money released in September doesn’t come from American taxpayers, was restricted to humanitarian purposes, and couldn’t have been funneled to Hamas in time to be used in what appear to be long-planned attacks in any case. In short, these Republican leaders are deliberately lying.”

Surprisingly, even Fox “news” reported the truth about the lack of linkage between the unfreezing of assets and the Hamas attack.

Biden has made it clear that the US backs Israel in its fight against evil. Republicans – many of whom have been less enthusiastic about helping Ukraine in its fight against evil – are bottom-feeding with their attempts to weaken Biden with these opportunistic attacks (to repeat McDaniel, “this is a great opportunity for our candidates”).  

By now misinformation and flat-out lies by Republican “leaders” is almost assumed – or at least it should be.  After all, 147 of them voted to overturn the 2020 Presidential election results, even after the mob’s attack.

ELSEWHERE…

…Speaking of treason and what should happen to traitors… “Months after leaving the White House, former President Donald Trump allegedly discussed potentially sensitive information about U.S. nuclear submarines with a member of his Mar-a-Lago Club -- an Australian billionaire who then allegedly shared the information with scores of others, including more than a dozen foreign officials, several of his own employees, and a handful of journalists, according to sources familiar with the matter.”- ABC news  

…“The U.S. economy churned out a blockbuster 336,000 jobs in September, smashing economists’ expectations…The data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics [illustrated]…the job market’s remarkable strength…the unemployment rate holding at 3.8 percent and wage growth outpacing inflation in a boost to workers. But it was also the latest example of an economy that simply refuses to slow down, despite the Federal Reserve’s aggressive attempts to get prices and hiring closer to normal levels. The economy’s defiance has worked out for now, with a recession nowhere in sight. But that could change if the Fed is forced to keep interest rates high for an extended period.” – The Washington Post  

…One GOP Speaker candidate (Jim Jordan) apparently new nothing, saw nothing, said nothing about college wrestlers under his guidance who say they reported the team doctor’s sexual abuse to him. The other (Steve Scalise) reportedly identified his political persona as “David Duke[1] without the baggage.” Jordan was one of the ringleaders of “the Republican congressmen” Trump was relying on to overturn the election. And both of them voted not to certify the 2020 election.

…George Santos (R-NY) is charged with more fraud, including stealing the identity of donors to his campaign and using their credit cards without their knowledge. The behavior described in the NY Times article (linked above) is jaw-dropping. How could he ever have believed he’s get away with this?! And remember, this guy gets to vote for the next Speaker, and perhaps on whether the government remains open.

…As struggles against terrorism and fascism are waged by American allies,[2] the consensus “dumbest Senator,” “Coach” Tommy Tuberville (R- Alabama), continues to exert holds on military appointments. He has been — for months — protesting of the military’s policy of transporting service members seeking an abortion to a state where it is legal for them to have one, by holding up any appointments and/or promotions and leaving hundreds of vacancies in leadership positions in our military services. He is using another of the Senate’s arcane and anti-democratic traditions that allows any one Senator to put a hold on Senate nominations – for any (or no) – reason at all.

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[1] From the same Louisiana congressional district and a one-time Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.

[2] As an aircraft carrier strike force steams to the eastern Mediterranean in order to assist Israel, the U.S. Navy does not have a Chief of Naval Operations, although Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the vice chief of naval operations, became the acting CNO in August.