How does Kevin McCarthy live with himself?
How does the mis-titled leader of the House Republicans look at himself in the mirror, knowing as he must that the real powers in his party are the gun-toting bigots, Trumpian conspiracists and insurrection sympathizers he’s enabled, like Reps. Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia?
Is McCarthy so intent on becoming House speaker, if Republicans win a majority in the midterm elections, that he’ll do nothing to risk the wrath of these people, fearing that Donald Trump could doom his dream?
The answer, of course, is yes.
Books and studies document a rise in Americans’ comfort with political violence, especially on the right, reflecting the polarization Trump turbocharged. A survey in late January found that 56% of Republicans agreed that “the traditional American way of life is disappearing so fast that we may have to use force to save it,” compared with 22% of Democrats and 35% of independents. In recent years, the government has identified far-right domestic terrorists as a growing danger. “There is no doubt about it,” FBI Director Christopher Wray told the Senate in September, “today’s threat is different from what it was 20 years ago.”