McCarthy Malarkey and the Hollow Gavel
By Larry S. Buford
*On the second anniversary of the January 6th insurrection on Capitol Hill – on the very day that President Biden awarded the prized Presidential Citizens Medal to some election officials who were seriously threatened for taking a stance against overturning election results, and to those who risked their lives holding the front line to protect [the then] vice president Mike Pence and other representatives during the certification process – Congressman Kevin McCarthy won the majority House of Representatives leadership role after 15 rounds of contentious voting within the GOP.
According to reports, not one Republican whose very lives hung in the balance, including McCarthy, as the rioters roamed the Capitol halls shouting, “hang Mike Pence” and “where’s Nancy [Pelosi]?” attended the honorable ceremony.
The irony is that McCarthy, realizing the danger posed by the rioters who stormed the Capitol, called [the then] president Trump and pleaded with him to call them off stating “they’re your people.” Reportedly Trump responded, “Well, Kevin, I guess they are just more upset about the election theft than you are.” A week later, McCarthy stated on the floor of the House that Trump was responsible for the attack and failed to immediately denounce the “undemocratic, un-American and criminal” actions of the mob. In private conversations, he was telling fellow republicans that he would urge Trump to resign before his term expired stating “I’ve had it with this guy.” Shortly afterward, McCarthy went to Mar-a-Lago (Spanish meaning: “sea to lake” like big to small; befitting the plight of Trump) to meet with the former president in a show of support that contradicted his previous public and private statements. Well, so much for honorable and respectable leadership.
It reminds me that after all the complaints of widespread fraud filed in courts (up to 60) by Trump’s attorneys, the claims were denied for lack of evidence, but many extreme right-wing televangelists continued to promote “The Big Lie” and the “stolen election” theories. I posed the question that if they continue to use their pulpits and other platforms to promote unfounded lies, why should anyone believe them for anything else? I don’t think God is pleased with what they did.
Likewise with McCarthy – why should we believe anything he says about democracy, keeping the oath to the Constitution, and fighting for the American people when he’s clearly taking his marching orders from a proven liar who instigated an insurrection and refused to transfer power because he would not accept defeat? And could it be (as many suspect) that he has compromised so much in his power-grab to become majority speaker of the House, that his gavel will ring hollow? The word “malarkey” that President Biden has often used, rhymes perfectly with McCarthy.
