Did you hear the news? A group of government activists being led by conservative firebrand Ammon Bundy, sounds like a villain from a western movie, has made headlines. In June 2022, according to my esteemed colleagues Patricia Mazzei and Alan Feuer, “at least a half-dozen current and former Proud Boys,” those charming chaps, managed to grab some seats on the Miami-Dade Republican Executive Committee. Two of them even had criminal charges for being part of the infamous Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Sounds like they were planning to bring their skills of rabble-rousing and grandstanding to the party, but ultimately ended up just bewildering them.
These disruptive Proud Boys managed to infiltrate the leadership of the party, and even went on to run for local offices, all to shake things up. They have managed to completely shake the Miami-Dade Republican Party that was built into what was touted as a powerhouse by former governor Jeb Bush and the rest of the establishment nearly four decades ago. Now, it’s become an enigma—an organization roiled by internal conflict as it tries to reconcile itself with the forces pulling it towards the hard right.
According to Rachel Kleinfeld, a senior fellow in the democracy, conflict and governance program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in her Politico essay, “How Political Violence Went Mainstream on the Right,” the “right support for violence is no longer a fringe position.” Shocking! Instead, people who are joining these thrilling political events like the Jan. 6 insurrection are married middle-aged men with jobs and kids. Who would have thought? But wait, it’s not just them, those who cheer for violence are actually most connected to the Republican party. This isn’t a fringe movement at all, it’s people who think violence is a way to defend democracy, the best way to practice their freedom of speech.
The progressives have shaken things up a lot that even some people of color moved towards the right in 2020. Fear, as it turns out, is a significant cause of violence. As America undergoes immense change , people are starting to feel unmoored, anxious and behind. The snake-oil salesman named Tucker Carlson offers his racist Great Replacement theory as an explanation (we know you want to roll your eyes too). Meanwhile, the progressive left calls people names if they can’t march to a radically new tune fast enough. No wonder people turn towards the right, which seems more understanding and accepting at times.
The Republican leaders, filled with the spirit of working together, totally showed their willingness to disempower both Democrats and cities run by Democrats if they defy Republican-endorsed policies on matters as diverse as immigration, abortion and gun control. It’s all go big or go home with this lot. Time to start stocking up on popcorn, folks.
