
Democrats convince no one by flagging each and every slight as the ‘end of democracy'
God knows today's right indulges in plenty of absurdly overheated rhetoric, but can Democrats please quit proclaiming the end of democracy over every trivial affront?
The latest onset of fascism came when Sen. Alex Padilla burst into Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem's LA presser Thursday and got tackled by Secret Service agents who didn't recognize the crazy shouting man, then pulled out of the room in handcuffs.
Dems nationwide were shocked, shocked.
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Here in New York Gov. Kathy Hochul claimed the takedown of the California senator 'shocked the conscience'; mayoral frontrunner Andrew Cuomo called it part of Team Trump's push to 'silence opposition and undermine our democracy'; AOC demanded a 'full investigation.'
Puh-leaze.
How do any of them want a Republican trying to hijack one of their events treated?
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And if Noem was out to 'silence' Padilla, why meet with him for 15 minutes afterward? It's not because she feared finger-wagging from, say, Sen. Cory 'Spartacus' Booker.
And all the hysteria ignores the simple fact that anyone who cares to can see for themselves on the video.
Just as, yes, they can see ample images of the LA rioting that Democrats and their media enablers insist is 'mostly peaceful' — when they're not denying there's any violence at all.
Far too many on the left are used to closed conversations where no one will challenge this nonsense.
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It may work for winning cheers at a rally, getting clueless rich folks to cut you campaign checks or group-wallowing on BlueSky, but outside your bubble it just looks pathetic.
And if telling a heckler 'not now' is fascist, then every teacher in America should be wearing jackboots.

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Indianapolis Star
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As he promises to work for unity in a polarized church, Americans with very different views about the future of the church are feeling optimistic about his pontificate. Terry Barber, a 50-year-old Catholic from Sacramento, California, hopes Leo will seek a 'more progressive and modern church' that is more accepting of all. 'I'm optimistic. Certainly, the first pope from the United States is significant,' said Barber, who identifies as a Democrat. 'Since he worked under the previous pope, I'm sure he has similar ideas, but certainly some that are original, of his own. I'm looking forward to seeing what, if any changes, come about under his leadership.' Bipartisan appeal About half of Democrats have a favorable view of the new pope, as do about 4 in 10 Republicans and independents. Republicans are a little more likely than Democrats to be reserving judgment. About half of Republicans say they don't know enough to have an opinion about the pope, compared to about 4 in 10 Democrats. Republicans, notably, are no more likely than Democrats to have an unfavorable opinion of the pope. About 1 in 10 in each group view Pope Leo unfavorably. Victoria Becude, 38, a Catholic and Republican from Florida, said she's excited about the first U.S.-born pope and hopes he can steer the country back to Catholic doctrine and make Americans proud. 'I'm rooting for him,' she said. 'I hope that America can get back to faith, and I hope he can do that.' Being a political liberal or conservative, of course, isn't the same thing as identifying as a liberal or conservative Catholic. But the poll found no discernible partisan gap among Catholics on Pope Leo, and Catholics across the ideological spectrum have expressed hope that Leo will be able to heal some of the divisions that emerged during the pontificate of his predecessor, Pope Francis. Pope Leo recently criticized the surge of nationalist political movements in the world as he prayed for reconciliation and dialogue — a message in line with his pledges to make the Catholic Church a symbol of peace. Before becoming pope, Cardinal Robert Prevost presided over one of the most revolutionary reforms of Pope Francis' pontificate by having women serve on the Vatican board that vets nominations for bishops. He also has said decisively that women cannot be ordained as priests. Donald Hallstone, 72, a Catholic who lives in Oregon, said he expects that Leo will continue to promote women in governance positions 'at a time when there's a shortage of priests' and other leaders in the church. 'It'd be great to see women in those roles,' he said. 'Women were not excluded in the first centuries.' On the other hand, some right-wing U.S. Catholics hope Leo will focus on Catholic doctrinal opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion. Becude, the Republican, said she's against same-sex relationships because she believes that unions should be between a man and a woman, something that Pope Leo has reiterated . Even though she describes herself as 'very conservative,' though, she's in favor of reproductive rights even when church teaching opposes abortion . 'I don't believe that they should stop women from having abortions,' she said. 'We should have our own rights because you don't know the circumstances behind the reason why a woman would want the abortion in the first place.' Few have negative views — yet There's plenty of room for views to shift as Leo's agenda as pope becomes clear. Not all Americans have formed an opinion of the new pope yet; particularly, members of other religious groups are more likely to be still making up their minds. About half of born-again Protestants, mainline Protestants, and adults with no religious affiliation don't know enough to have an opinion about the pope, although relatively few — about 1 in 10 — in each group have an unfavorable view of him. Older Americans — who are more likely to identify as Catholics — are also more likely than younger Americans to be fans of Leo's. About half of Americans ages 60 and older have a favorable view of Pope Leo, compared to about 4 in 10 Americans under 30. But even so, only about 1 in 10 U.S. adults under 30 have an unfavorable view of the pope right now. Mercedes Drink, 31, is from the pope's hometown of Chicago. She still hopes that women will become ordained under his pontificate. 'It's cool; I like him because he brings something different,' said Drink, who lives in Minnesota and identifies as being part of the 'religious nones' — atheists, agnostics, or nothing in particular. 'As a young woman, I hope that he can bring change … considering who he is, he brings something new to the table. I hope he opens the world's eyes to modernizing the church, bringing more people in, having more diversity.' ___ Henao reported from Princeton, N.J. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. ___ The AP-NORC poll of 1,158 adults was conducted June 5-9, using a sample drawn from NORC's probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 4 percentage points. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . 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