What, No "Bolshevism"?

In 2018 Taylor Swift urged voters to reject the bid for the U.S. Senate of Republican Marsha Blackburn in favor of Democrat Phil Bredesen. Blackburn won easily but not before Swift had blasted her in an Instagram post, remarking

I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives.

Taylor hit (almost) all of the (relatively safe) cultural g-spots- supporting equal pay for women, same sex marriage, and racial civil rights while opposing domestic violence, date rape, and discrimination against gay individuals.  She left out reproductive freedom and discrimination rationalized by alleged religious faith, but, hey, she has a career to protect.

So now the Tennessee Senator has taken to denouncing Swift:

Marsha Blackburn appears to be confusing socialism with Sharia. Is there an IQ test you have to fail to be a Republican politician? https://t.co/pMLxE7U5a0

— Duty To Warn 🔉 (@duty2warn) July 9, 2021

Taylor Swift may oppose rule by the wealthiest .1%, but it's not a priority, unless those rulers are from an unapproved racial or sexual group. Although Senator Blackburn is describing Sharia, she probably is aware that Swift's beef with her is not over monopoly, anti-trust, government deregulation, or taxation or anything obstructing the lower or working classes. 

Nonetheless, Blackburn ends her attack on Swift with "They don't allow protection of private intellectual property rights."

Private. Property. She is singing from the old GOP playbook in which one economic class is entitled by divine right to rule over the others.

It may be no coincidence that President Trump's once sobriety-deprived quack of a doctor is going the same route:

Rep. Ronny Jackson describes Democrats as "socialist communist Marxist" pic.twitter.com/C5owdD9wHv

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 9, 2021

Republicans promote anti-minority policies, the most notable and significant being voter suppression. However, they often are afraid of confronting the culture wars directly.  The "socialist" thing is safer because it shields Republicans from being labeled "misogynistic" or, worse yet, "racist." so over the next 16 months, there will be more of this.

Democrats are not defenseless. Try"if helping mothers with child care...," "if regulating Big Tech...." or "if public education of our children...."  Otherwise, there is the old standby: "Republicans used to call Social Security and Medicare 'socialist.'"  Sometimes, truth is the best defense and offense.

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