Why do republican politicians act this way?

[Jakes Progress]

Because any con man can tell you that it is easier to cheat a selfish fool than an honest man.

cruz, mcconnell, et al (having no moral compass) know that it is easier to get the votes of mean, stupid people than it is to convince decent, thinking people to support you.

[LakeArenal]

1. Acting is the actual problem.

Acting like pigs and greedy pricks.

UNTIL a bad thing hits them personally...
Then they get all noble and too late want to do the right thing.

[ananda]

2. There should be a new comic strip called Waqqy Toons..

with Reeps as the featured waqs.

[Mike 03]

3. I think so. It took me a long time, and reading some books, to accept this.

It's the path of least resistance, and also the fact that: from their point of view, there is nothing to be gained by doing the ethical thing, and so much to lose by doing the courageous thing.

Politics in the United States has teetered into being a zero-sum game.

It is a sad state of affairs, but it is almost a relief to finally understand it, so I can just move on and deal with the hand we've been dealt.

[Jakes Progress]

4. I used to have republican friends.

We used to argue and debate the best way to improve our country. Now all they want to do is follow crazy talk. I guess I could feel sorry for old style republicans as their party has become a cess pool. But they let it do so. They sold their souls for judges. The country didn't want their ideas so they took on the cause of nasty, racist, stupid people in order to get elected and put into place policies that most Americans don't want.

Nope. Can't feel sorry for them. They did this to the country with the full knowledge of what they were doing. If they still call themselves republicans, they have come to welcome the slime that they are covering themselves with.

[Act_of_Reparation]

5. More or less.

Cruz—with degrees from Princeton and Harvard—is a particularly obvious huckster. There is no way he actually believes any of the shit he says. It's all an act. The only thing Ted Cruz cares about is Ted Cruz.

However...

People like Jim Jordan, Louie Gohmert, Marjorie Taylor Green, Lauren Boebert... they seem motivated by ideas as much as they are their own careers.

[Jakes Progress]

6. Cruz is such an obvious sneeze

that even republicans hate him. He doesn't care. He gets elected by the hate and ignorance of his constituency. (Disclosure: I live in Texas. I am not a follower of that fool, but I know many of the fools that are.)

I think a really good reporter ought to do a story on which republicans are "true" believers and which are simple con men. Surely there are sources for good reporters who can provide that information.

[smirkymonkey]

7. This makes me think of the Al Franken quote about Ted Cruz...

"Here's the thing you have to understand about Ted Cruz, I like Ted Cruz more than most of my other colleagues like Ted Cruz. And I hate Ted Cruz."

I miss Al. I would love to see him back.

[Act_of_Reparation]

8. I thought it was going to be the time he called Cruz a "world-class butthole"

But both are good digs.

[JHB]

9. The policies they want, that their backers want, are not popular...

...so they can't run on the "strength" of those.

They need to ride on a cushion of foam and bile to take and maintain power. It's how they've done it for decades.