Politics - News Analysis
Kevin McCarthy Tells Sick Joke: Says If He Becomes Speaker, He’ll Hit Pelosi with the Gavel
Men cannot hit women. Real men do not hit women, ever. Even after being hit.
It is that simple. Men don’t hit women. Here is another one that is every bit as simple. Men don’t joke about hitting women because under no circumstances is it funny. It is not funny in a backyard barbeque with everyone six beers into the festivities (except the driver). It is especially not funny among our country’s leaders, people who – however quaint – are supposed to set an example.
Tonight McCarthy joked about hitting a woman, a particularly “uppity” woman who believes she’s powerful and strong in her womanhood, the very type that… (From Mediaite)
At a GOP fundraising dinner in Nashville, Tn., House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) joked about hitting Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) with a gavel if Republicans retake the majority in the 2022 midterm elections, allowing him to take over as Speaker.
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Will McCarthy ever hit Nancy Pelosi with a gavel? Of course, not. But that’s not the point. The point is, why would he feel the need to say it? Why does he find it funny? We think we know.
The TN congressional delegation just presented @GOPLeader with a gavel that says “Fire Pelosi.” pic.twitter.com/0xkH662dei
— Yue Stella Yu (@bystellayu_tnsn) August 1, 2021
The GOP and MAGA movement is, almost by definition, a movement composed of white men who are tired of hearing the new rules. The new rules can be summarized as “there are now rules for white men.” They are not supposed to be able to look down on someone who is gay, black, an immigrant, or a woman, especially a strong woman, a woman who doesn’t apologize for being a strong woman, a woman who will use her power to defeat what you want.
Would the joke be funny if Tim Ryan was the Speaker and McCarthy joked about hitting Tim Ryan? No, it wouldn’t be funny. But the undertones wouldn’t be there, either. And there are undertones. Let’s all agree to not blow this off as some silly comment made upon being presented with a gavel because it’s not. Deep down, deep deep down, there’s an attitude that men still get to dominate women, that women don’t belong at the top, and Kevin McCarthy is going to teach one a lesson who tried. He knows who is supposed to be on top.
Of course, he will never hit her. He will be gracious if (we don’t think it will happen) if he wins the House back, but let’s not allow any of this to fool us.
Tenn. reps gave Kevin McCarthy an oversized gavel after speech.
McCarthy invites the 1,400 at Nashville dinner to DC when he becomes speaker.
He says he wants everyone to see Pelosi hand him the gavel. "It will be hard not to hit her with it but I will bang it down,” he says.
— michaelscherer (@michaelscherer) August 1, 2021
Men do not hit women. Period. Thus jokes about men hitting women are not funny, period. Threats to hit women are not acceptable, period. And then there is the example set, perhaps someone hearing McCarthy joke about hitting her over the head with a gavel because she got to “uppity” as a woman. Perhaps other men hear that and relate, the woman getting too uppity and not realizing the man dominates, not knowing when to shut up, not knowing their place, it could be considered an option. Except, it is not. Ever.
We won’t take it further than that. Men don’t hit women. So why even say anything like it? So, Kevin, we are asking, why joke about it?
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[email protected] and on Twitter @JasonMiicak
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