The Best Predictor of Brat Behavior in Congress – The American Spectator | USA News and PoliticsThe American Spectator

The Democrats who behaved disgracefully at President Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress, and the ones who broke ranks to censure Al Green, offer an explanation for the behavior of politicians. More on that after a description of that bad behavior.

If Democrats had hoped on Tuesday to induce buyer’s remorse in voters, then by Wednesday, a few grasped that acting as rudely as Eric Cartman and with the social grace of Napoleon Dynamite reaffirmed in the electorate its choice.

The incivility displayed by Democrats at Donald Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress appeared not just wrong but early — early in the speech but also early in his second presidency. In pouncing just weeks after his inauguration, Democrats caricatured themselves as intolerant sore-losers.

Democrat leaders set the tone by boycotting the Escort Committee that normally accompanies the president into the chamber. Representative Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico held a sign behind the president’s head as he walked into the chamber that explained: “This is NOT normal.” Indeed, holding a sign behind the president’s head while he visits Congress is not normal.

But Democrats normalized such behavior. Representative Al Green, a poorer representation of Al Greens than the “Let’s Stay Together” Al Green, disrupted the speech by shouting and shaking his cane at the president. The sergeant-at-arms, as directed by Speaker Mike Johnson, eventually removed Green.

His colleagues heckled; others held aloft childish lollipop signs bearing such messages as “False,” “Musk Steals,” and “Save Medicaid.” A few removed business wear to reveal t-shirts featuring slogans. The most disgraceful moment of the night occurred when Democrats sat stoically as the president awarded an honorary Secret Service badge to 13-year-old brain cancer survivor D.J. Daniels. If you can’t clap at that, you can’t clap at anything the president does.

It all felt premeditated, which made it all worse. Prior to the speech, nearly two dozen Democratic senators released videos, many of which contained profanity, under the title “$#!+ That Ain’t True,” which managed to offend Miss Manners and Miss Jones, your grammar-school teacher. They thought about this juvenile behavior and engaged in it anyhow. They made themselves appear foolish by plan.

The Hill counted at least 14 representatives, none of whom faced a challenger within 12 percentage points in their 2024 general elections, who walked out during Donald Trump’s speech. The walkouts, with the percentage of their vote attained in the 2024 general listed parenthetically, include: Jasmine Crockett of Texas (85 percent), Maxwell Frost of Florida (62 percent), Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico (56 percent), LaMonica McIver of New Jersey (81 percent), Lateefah Simon of California (65 percent), Mark Pocan of Wisconsin (70 percent), Lloyd Doggett of Texas (74 percent), Judy Chu of California (65 percent), Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts (97 percent), Veronica Escobar of Texas (60 percent), Pramila Jayapal of Washington (84 percent), Ilhan Omar of Minnesota (74 percent), Jamie Raskin of Maryland (77 percent), and Jared Huffman of California (72 percent).

During a year in which the Republicans enjoyed coattails, none of the walkouts faced a serious challenge. In other words, they understand that no consequences await them for bad behavior on Tuesday evening. They, like their constituents, live in insulated bubbles.

Ten House Democrats, in contrast, voted to censure Al Green: Ami Bera (56 percent) and Jim Costa (53 percent) of California, Ed Case of Hawaii (72 percent), Laura Gillen (51 percent) and Tom Suozzi (52 percent) of New York, Jim Himes (61 percent) of Connecticut, Chrissy Houlahan (56 percent) of Pennsylvania, Marcy Kaptur (48 percent) of Ohio, Jared Moskowitz (52 percent) of Florida, and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (52 percent) of Washington.

For the most part, these Democrats who behaved responsibly and with respect for the institution represent competitive districts. They act as normal people might because consequences await if they do not.

All sorts of explanations exist for the prevalence of conduct that sends students to detention among those who should know better. Green, waving his cane in get-off-of-my-lawn fashion, illustrates the elderly, don’t-care demographic that leads the out-of-touch party. Their activist base fetishizes demonstration, often therapeutic but rarely effective, as a response to everything. And the Left, in America and beyond, exhibits more intolerant characteristics than it did, say, a half-century ago. Shouting down democracy, as the demos witnessed on Tuesday, amounts to just the latest example of this. (RELATED: The Kids Are Alright, It’s the Boomers Who Are Bananas)

But the primary bad influence involves voters. In the districts of so many of those acting up, they all vote one way. This incentivizes disrespectful behavior toward those who disagree.

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