After turning coat from Democrat to Republican, Rep. Jeff Van Drew ran to Fox News and slobbered over “the work that you do and the objectivity that you have.”
In case you missed it, Van Drew formally became a Republican last week and pledged “undying support” for Donald Trump despite promising voters late last month that he, a lifelong Democrat would remain one.
But now that Van Drew is getting pro-Trump money, he’s bowing down and slobbering over Trump TV and one of its biggest Trump sycophants, Maria Bartiromo.
You could feel the love in the air when Bartiromo began the interview with an enthusiastic, “Congressman, it is a pleasure to see you.”
Van Drew’s response was jaw dropping.
VAN DREW: It is a pleasure to be with you and as I was saying before, I am so proud to be associated with you. You truly represent what news media should be about and just how to conduct a show like this. I’m very, very proud of you and the work that you do and the objectivity that you have. So thank you.
Bartiromo was deeply appreciative. “Congressman, that means the world to me in this environment of media today. I’m grateful and I so appreciate your comments.”
Then she quickly pivoted to prodding him to attack Democrats by asking him “how you came to this decision to leave the majority, the Democrats and become a Republican.”
Van Drew replied that the Democratic party has moved “further and further to the left," he’s a “proud capitalist” who “believe[s] in hard work,” etc. “The final sign,” Van Drew said, was a supposed dictate, “You have to vote for impeachment.”
I’m sure those pro-Trump dollars helped, too, but Bartiromo thoughtfully didn’t mention them.
Instead, she said, “So you were uncomfortable with the shaming and, you know, the pushback that you couldn’t do what you thought was right. That you had to go along with the herd.”
The Republican party forced out Republican Justin Amash this year when he declared his support for impeachment. But neither Bartiromo nor Van Drew seemed to remember.
Now, on the network whose brand is poisonous partisan rhetoric, Van Drew announced, “I want to bring people together. Let’s bring Americans together.”
Watch the kowtowing below, from the December 22, 2019 Sunday Morning Futures.
If the opposition can really be called “bipartisan” with Van Drew (on the verge of switching parties), Peterson and Golden joining (and Gabbard refusing to show any spine), then the vote in favor must also be considered effectively bipartisan, with Justin Amash being a noteworthy Republican sticking his neck out about this.
It’s true that the GOP frantically moved to get him to “independent” status before these votes were held, but let’s just stay with the parties these guys were in when they were elected during the last time the voters were able to choose. Amash was elected as a Republican in November 2018 and only was pushed out as of June 2019. I’d consider him effectively a Republican vote in favor of impeachment.
So either we consider this to have been “bipartisan” on both sides of the issue – OR we can consider this to be a scenario where it was completely on party lines, with the Republicans refusing to admit anything. But the Right Wing doesn’t get to have this both ways.
“House Minority Leader and Lev Parnas cash recipient Kevin McCarthy was on the Fox Business Channel on Sunday, on Maria Bartiromo’s theoretically maybe-about-business version of one of the big kid’s shows. (For those of you unawares, Fox “Business” is where they stuff the people they don’t quite want to ‘fess up to paying on the flagship network: See Dobbs, Lou.)"
– Hunter on Daily Kos
At first I thought Van Drew was in a desperate political spot and probably would get booted regardless of what he did. Now I’m starting to see the shrewdness of his decision and fear it might flip back Republican with him still in Congress. And, if it does, it’ll go from voting 70% Democratic to full Trump butt-munching MAGA.
Van Drew’s heartwarming moral narrative of a politician standing up to partisan pressure to vote against his principles is wonderful MAGA fooling performance art as well. However, the real story – fact check much Bartiromo? – is Van Drew was the one pressuring Democrats, not the other way around. Van Drew called together his 8 Democratic county chairmen and demanded they support his decision to vote against impeachment. Now we can start the story about one saying “no”.
I’ll give Van Drew credit for being a shrewd politician. He realizes the leverage he has over Trump. Trump would do anything to exploit a story of a crossover like Van Drew on the eve of an impeachment vote. Now Van Drew’s got all the resources Trump has to offer in helping get reelected in 2020 in a tough +1 Republican district. A poll said he wouldn’t get elected as a Democrat (if I recall 60% opposed) and with Trump’s endorsement he’s a shoe-in beating the other (3?) Republicans interested in a primary.
