Despite being impeached twice, encouraging the Jan. 6 insurrection and being neglecting the lives of millions of American during the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, what was formerly the Republican Party has continued to stand by Donald Trump. Although he is no longer president, members of Congress and a large portion of Americans are working to ensure his vision for a divisive, hateful and racist America thrive. It was for this reason, among others, that longtime conservative political commentator S.E. Cupp was open about her decision to vote for Joe Biden this election cycle. “I don’t know this party. I don’t know these Republicans. This isn’t what drew me to the party,” the CNN host admitted on the HollywoodLife Podcast.
She continued, “I’m drawn to limited government, self-reliance, self-empowerment, lower taxes, small government — that kind of stuff, which seemed normal and empowering to me. And I don’t know what the party stands for right now.” Following the insurrection on Jan. 6 that saw a rowdy, weapon-wielding mob storm the Capitol building when Congress was in session to certify the election, several Republican Congressmen and women disassociated themselves from Trump, while others have continued to publicly support him on behalf of their constituents.
“We’re supposed to be for Law and Order,” S.E. said of the former GOP. “Cloaking it as patriotism or conservatism is just a lie. And I think there are enough good conservatives that see through that, even in Congress, but there’s certainly been a lack of courage to call out people like Marjorie Taylor Greene.” For example, S.E. explained, the Republican House Conference held a vote on conservative Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney, to remove her from leadership because she voted to impeach Donald Trump. In a silent vote, her fellow congresspeople voted to keep her in leadership, but if the vote was not silent, S.E. doesn’t believe that would have been the case. “If the vote had not been silent, I’m not sure it would have gone that way. And that’s really sad and disappointing,” she noted.
Still, the S.E. Cupp: Unfiltered host doesn’t understand why her fellow conservatives continue to stand by Trump. “Republicans, over the course of his four years, lost the House and the Senate. He didn’t deliver on most of the promises that he pledged. I’m not sure what Republicans thought they got other than tax cuts, which Joe Biden can repeal, and conservative judges, but Joe Biden can appoint liberal judges and I’m sure he will across the country. So, the calculus doesn’t make a lot of sense to me,” S.E. explained. “I think there are members of Congress who are worried that pissing him off is going to imperil their next election…so it’s eye on the prize. But all of this short-term thinking for Republicans is this never ending vicious cycle that is just prolonging the inevitable — which is that there will be no voters left for the Republican Party.”
Make sure to catch S.E. Cupp and her political commentary on CNN and other news outlets! Listen to the full HollywoodLife Podcast with S.E., here!