From Simpson’s incivility to Little’s dog whistle, moderates embrace Trump’s rhetoric
This week provided a preview of the coming Republican primary — a demoralizing one for anyone hoping for a return of some semblance of political normalcy in the GOP.
Six years ago, if I were to make a list of the truly pragmatic Republicans in Idaho — the ones with a deep knowledge of policy, a willingness to compromise and a commitment to making things better where they could — Brad Little and Mike Simpson would have stood near the top.
Simpson was an effective critic of partisan gridlock and the all-or-nothing tactics of the tea party movement for years during the Obama administration. He closed a deal on the Boulder-White Clouds after years of work, protected funding for key federal facilities in Idaho and was a leader on important public lands issues.
Little was perhaps the most effective lieutenant governor Idaho has had, always more comfortable in legislative negotiations or taking a deep dive into cybersecurity or nuclear energy policy than on the campaign trail. In the early days of the pandemic, his response showed his fact-driven commitment to pragmatism.
But the Trump years warped the Republican Party, and neither Simpson nor Little has been spared.
Simpson was among Trump’s harshest critics during the 2016 primary. He immediately and properly declared candidate Trump unfit for office after a recording of him bragging about sexual assault surfaced, and he didn’t say one good thing about him for the rest of the campaign.
But things slowly shifted after Trump took office. Simpson would say he hated the things Trump said on Twitter, but that it was hard to argue with his policies. Over time, that shifted toward a stance of protecting Trump from scrutiny. Simpson opposed impeaching Trump, gave rhetorical support to ousting Rep. Liz Cheney for criticizing Trump and voted not to hold Steve Bannon in contempt for refusing to appear before a committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection.
At the governor’s dinner this weekend, he finally embraced Trump’s rhetorical style, as well, ending his speech with “Let’s go, Brandon,” (which means “f*** Joe Biden”). He quickly tweeted it out, and Simpson’s account became a stand-in for Trump’s.
It was Simpson’s own bit of “locker room talk” to signal to the Trumpists in the room that he’s one of them. He got the applause he was looking for.
This is the same Simpson who, when justifying his vote against Trump’s impeachment last year, wrote: “We must move forward with civility, respect, and tolerance being our guiding principles and seek common ground. Both sides must stop shouting into their respective echo chambers and at each other. We are Americans first, and it is time for us to do the difficult work of reconciliation. Our democracy depends on it.”
What a difference a year makes.
State of the State
Reading Little’s State of the State from 2021 against the one he gave Monday, the differences are striking.
In his State of the State a year ago, Little held a moment of silence for the more-than 1,500 Idahoans who had died in the pandemic during 2020. This year, the more-than 2,500 who died in 2021 passed with no mention.
There was a token pat on the back for “pandemic heroes” still battling the disease but, as new cases again skyrocket toward record levels, there was no promise the state would help them, no urging citizens to do their part. Instead, Little focused on the economy and bragged about banning vaccine passports and court challenges to federal vaccine mandates — in the state with one of the lowest vaccine uptake rates in the nation.
A year ago, Little began by condemning the attempted insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, which had happened just a few days prior. At a time when distressing numbers of Republican voters illogically believe that the election was stolen from Trump and that the use of violence is necessary, it would have been good to hear, as we did last year, “Hostility and violence are not an expression of your rights; they are a violation of everyone else’s.”
Instead, Little emphasized how lucky Idahoans are to have elections largely free from fraud. This, of course, is true, but it’s also true of every other state in the country, as Little knows. His emphasis on how lucky Idahoans are — unlike the poor, unlucky folks in Arizona, Georgia and Pennsylvania, his knowing grin seemed to say — functioned as a wink and nod to the Big Lie that sent that mob into the U.S. Capitol and that Trump still shouts about today.
What a difference a year makes.
Election-year rhetoric
It’s clear why Little and Simpson are using such rhetoric. There’s a primary election approaching, and since the Idaho GOP closed its primary, by far the most powerful voting bloc is Republican primary voters.
To be sure, both Little and Simpson have retained a measure of their old pragmatism. Simpson’s plan to save Idaho’s salmon is the only serious one on the table. Little’s budget calls for needed investments in public education and infrastructure.
But Trump’s candidacy changed a majority of Republican voters. Trump’s fundamental character — dishonest, profane, belligerent, disdainful of democracy — has suffused a significant portion of the Republican electorate and trickled back up to its elected leadership.
It seems both Little and Simpson have learned a simple lesson: In Trump’s Republican Party, there is no room for the men they used to be.
This story was originally published January 11, 2022 at 4:14 PM.