January 11, 2023 12:09 PM UTC

This is Why You Don't Put Republicans in Charge

• 3 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

Last week’s debacle that saw Kevin McCarthy finally ascend to the role of Qanon House Speaker after 15 different votes — a delay not seen since before the Civil War — was just a preview of what to expect from the new narrow Republican majority in the House of Representatives.

Republicans may talk a big game about working on the issues that matter to American families, yada, yada — but their actions are very different.

The U.S. House is voting on two anti-abortion measures today, one day after agreeing to create a new committee under the control of Rep. Jim Jordan that will investigate the federal government basically over anything that makes Jordan sad.

In fact, conspiracy theories were very popular among House Republicans on Tuesday. Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke of Montana even took to the floor of the House to vomit out this ridiculous rant:

Zinke: Despite the deep state’s attempts to repeatedly stop me I stand before you as a duly elected member of the congress and tell you that a deep state exists… They want to wipe out the American cowboy pic.twitter.com/BrOiIltbMp

— Acyn (@Acyn) January 10, 2023

As MSNBC explains:

Zinke, speaking from the floor of the House during a congressional debate, seriously asked people to believe that there are nefarious political actors, using the levers of federal power, coordinating plots with allies, and running secret campaigns to advance their insidious agenda.

As for why in the world Zinke made such an argument, it probably has something to do with his extensive record of ethics scandals…[Pols emphasis]

…Zinke ultimately resigned under a cloud of controversy. But even after leaving the nation’s capital, he was haunted by his record.

Last February, the Interior Department’s inspector general concluded that Zinke lied to investigators about his involvement in a Montana land deal and had run afoul of federal ethics rules. In August, the inspector general’s office released the findings of an entirely separate matter in which Zinke was also found to have knowingly — and “repeatedly” — made false statements to federal investigators.

Voters in Montana’s 1st Congressional District elected him anyway, though it was close, and the Republican didn’t quite crack the 50% threshold.

Zinke served two terms in Congress before Donald Trump nominated him to be Interior Secretary in January 2017. Zinke lasted less than two years in Trump’s Cabinet, resigning after a series of scandals that included his frequent use of charter flights for his own personal use.

Back in Congress on Tuesday, Zinke claimed that dark money Democratic groups want to “destroy” the American West and added that “in many cases they want to wipe out the American cowboy completely.”

Wait, what? Zinke believes that evil Democratic gazillionaires are plotting to eliminate all cowboys?

Don’t ask why. It doesn’t matter.

These are not serious people interested in serious issues.