The Democratic Party has channeled the spirit of Marie Antoinette in recent years, relishing in the decadence of American society while adopting the dismissive “let them eat brioche” attitude. In our post-2016 world, it has become more apparent that the Democrats are no longer the party of the working class – if it ever was. Instead, the humble donkeys have metastasized into the bourgeois pigs of Animal Farm, with any compassion for average folk being purely superficial or downright feigned for electoral gain and media adoration. A mayor, a governor, a Speaker of the House, and a former vice president have embraced the rules for thee but not for me philosophy during the Coronavirus pandemic, from imbibing rich desserts to skirting the COVID-19 public health regulations. As the great H.L. Mencken said, “The cynics are right nine times out of ten” about politicians.
Entitled to the Entitlements
When Nancy Pelosi is not confined to her million-dollar property in Pacific Heights, feasting on her cache of gourmet ice cream, the House Speaker violates city lockdown rules to get her hair done. Security footage recently leaked to Fox News showed Pelosi without a mask at a San Francisco salon. She confessed to breaking the city’s Coronavirus requirements, but she did not admit to wrongdoing. Instead, she claimed that she was set up by a diabolical hairdresser and passed the blame on to the salon – she has ostensibly watched too many old episodes of The Bionic Woman and Wonder Woman. It is unclear if Russia had anything to do with Pelosi’s hypocrisy. This might not have been such a bad thing if it were not for her reproach for people who refused to wear masks.
Governor Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) has also been repeatedly caught without a mask inside and outside and around people. Any time he had been criticized for failing to sport a cloth over his mouth and nose, the governor was flippant about the comments. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio had been caught violating COVID-19 restrictions by attending the gym. He defended his questionable action by telling reporters, “I need exercise to be able to stay healthy and make decisions.”
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney was forced to tweet an apology after he was photographed maskless dining indoors at a Maryland restaurant. The picture of the mayor and his girlfriend quickly went viral on social media, mainly because he decided to prohibit indoor eating in the city of brotherly love, which is scheduled to be lifted on September 8. The mayor wrote in a statement:
“I know some are upset that I dined indoors at a restaurant in Maryland yesterday. I felt the risk was low because the county I visited has had fewer than 800 COVID-19 cases, compared to over 33,000 cases in Philadelphia.
Restaurant owners are among the hardest hit by the pandemic. I’m sorry if my decision hurt those who’ve worked to keep their businesses going under difficult circumstances. Looking forward to reopening indoor dining soon and visiting my favorite spots.”
And then there is former Vice President Joe Biden. One of the chief strategies of Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign has been blaming President Donald Trump for mishandling the pandemic. He has continually demanded Trump enact policies that the president has already done. Biden has also encouraged everyone to “listen to the experts” by wearing a mask and following public health guidelines. And yet, he has refrained from following his own advice. A barrage of clips will show Biden not putting on a mask delivering campaign speeches, participating in roundtable discussions, and talking to reporters. All this while complaining about the president not wearing a mask.
A Federal Ban on Incompetence
The paucity of self-awareness among the ruling elite is awe-inspiring. Are politicians inept creatures, unwilling to calculate the risks of being caught breaking the rules? Or are these esteemed officials indifferent to the public’s objections to their supercilious behavior? Politicians are a different breed of animal, forcing apes to hang their heads in shame that they are related to these folks. If you do not take it too seriously, politics is the greatest spectator sport in the world, mainly because of politicians’ bungling. Election campaigns are the World Series of politics and seeing leaders blunder and gaffe their way through these cycles can be as embarrassing as watching Boston Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner miss an easy groundball in 1986. But why would they care? After serving a couple of terms in public office, they are financially secure: media commentator, author, speaker, lobbyist, or consultant.
To put a different spin on Thomas Sowell’s famous quote: If Congress were to pass legislation making incompetence illegal, Capitol Hill would be vacant.
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Read more from Andrew Moran.
