My Monday column and a profile of the newest Republican maniac in Congress:
To paraphrase a line from the 1989 Batman movie: I’ve found a name for my pain, and it is Rep. Steve Stockman (R-TX). Until this past weekend, I was only mildly aware of this unit, but now that I’m fully introduced to his brand of politics and off-the-rails wingnuttery, I can neither turn away nor resist the urge to mercilessly assault him here and via social media.
I’ll get into the reasons presently, but first: who is Steve Stockman?
Out of the entire roster of fringe, far-right members of Congress, Stockman is perhaps the most extreme, radical, unhinged and, quite possibly, insane of the batch. And that’s no exaggeration. Sure, there’s considerable competition from the usual suspects: Gohmert, Bachmann, King, Foxx and so on. But Stockman is a new superstrain of far-right radicalism — he’s a wingnut internet troll but with the power to sponsor and vote on federal legislation. It’s almost as if he was genetically engineered by consortium of all the worst, most histrionic right-wing talk radio hosts, Fox News screechers, bloggers, Huff Post commenters and southern-twanged Christian fundamentalist crackpots. And this understates his awfulness. [continue reading here]