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April 02, 2018 02:04 PM UTC

"Republicans Hate Poor People" Gaffe Heard Round The World

  • 26 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols
Bad ratio.

The Denver Post’s Jesse Paul kicks off our press roundup of the latest jaw-dropper gaffe committed in the name of a county-level Colorado Republican Party organization–last week’s posts to Facebook and Twitter by the Alamosa Republicans outlining the reasons why (this is a verbatim quote) “Republicans hate poor people.”

A member of the Alamosa County Republicans has resigned after Facebook and Twitter posts from the organization said that “Republicans hate poor people.”

“The author acted independently and without the concurrence of any other member of the Alamosa County Republicans,” the group said in a subsequent Facebook post Saturday. “The regrettable post was made with the intention of condemning poverty, not persons affected by poverty, and was not meant to insult anyone. However, that occurred, and the author sincerely regrets the post and has offered his resignation from his position with the Alamosa County Republicans, which has been accepted. Actions have consequences.”

The latter Facebook post also said that the organization apologizes, calling the earlier posts “inappropriate and offensive.”

Alamosa City Councilor David Broyles (R).

It’s still not known who exactly posted this highly regrettable message, but as Denver7’s Blair Miller reports, speculation is zeroing in on Alamosa City Councilor David Broyles, who has yet to confirm or deny propriety:

It’s unclear who made the original post, but Alamosa City Council member David Broyles, who had previously been listed as a member of the party on its website, was no longer listed on the group’s site Monday.

Alamosa County Republicans Chair Sandra Wagner pointed Denver7 back to the apology post when reached for comment. She did not answer a question as to whether Broyles was the person who made the social media posts.

After Erik Maulbetsch of the Colorado Times-Recorder posted this item on Friday evening, it caught fire nationally despite the Easter holiday weekend–The Hill’s Avery Anapol:

A Colorado GOP group has apologized for a social media posting that said Republicans “hate poor people.”

The Alamosa County Republicans issued an apology on Facebook on Sunday, saying that the author of the original post has resigned.

Talking Points Memo:

The group asked followers to welcome its mea culpa on Saturday, labeling the post “inappropriate and offensive.” They said the author “acted independently and without the concurrence of any other member of the the Alamosa County Republicans,” but claimed the “regrettable post” was suppose to condemn poverty, “not persons affected by poverty.”

Newsweek:

Social media users condemned the group’s apology, with some saying it seems disingenuous given that the original post has still not been taken down from Twitter.

“You literally have the exact same message still posted to your twitter at this moment. That makes the apology seem disingenuous,” one user wrote.

Another added: “I am a Republican and I have never been so embarrassed to say this. But this past year I’ve just been so embarrassed of the ignorant thinking that people are having. Shame on you guys for keeping the post.”

If that’s not enough coverage, you can catch this story at Boing Boing, Newsmax, 9NEWS, FOX 31, and more outlets by the hour! In terms of self-inflicted damage to the Republican brand, this incident falls somewhere between Ted Cruz telling a three-year-old girl “the whole world is on fire” and Dan Quayle’s famous declaration that “I am not part of the problem. I am a Republican.”

Actually no, it’s worse than either of those.

In any event, we do now know that a resignation was prompted by somebody over this moment of singular unfortunate honesty–at least a resignation from the Alamosa Republicans. If it does turn out that Alamosa City Councilor David Broyles was the one who wrote “Republicans hate poor people,” we could see that august body deciding they don’t want to be spoken for in this way either.

And no, it doesn’t matter whether this was “the way he meant it.” The choice of words says it all, consciously or subconsciously.

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26 thoughts on ““Republicans Hate Poor People” Gaffe Heard Round The World”

  1. It was a silly thing to say. BUT Pols, you're wrong to say that intent doesn't matter. Only political gotcha artists would say that. The intent of these words is to say that Republicans value prosperity. We do not hate anyone for being poor. Anyone interested in true dialogue over political games understands that.

    No one expects better from Colorado Pols.

    1. If Republicans wanted true dialogue, then they shouldn't have said "Republicans hate poor people".  You say you value prosperity and yet you want to take peoples' health care away.  Your senate also passed a bill to take away student and low-income discounts for RTD fares, making it harder for them to get to work or school.  For people that value prosperity, you guys celebrate making it harder for people.  Things like this make "Republicans hate poor people" resonate. You don't care about kids who get killed in mass shootings either and you bully them.  Where is the prosperity there?

      Also, I heard you had proof that Obama illegally obtained data to win elections.  Time to pony up.

      1. Is this your idea of prosperity, Nutlid? Family values? Fiscal responsibility? 

        The government set to borrow nearly $1 trillion this year, an 84 percent jump from last year

        It was another crazy news week, so it's understandable if you missed a small but important announcement from the Treasury Department: The federal government is on track to borrow nearly $1 trillion this fiscal year — President Donald Trump's first full year in charge of the budget.

        That's almost double what the government borrowed in fiscal year 2017.

        What's particularly jarring is this is the first time borrowing has jumped this much (as a share of GDP) in a non-recession time since Ronald Reagan was president

        1. "since Ronald Reagan was president" — that was when the deficits exploded and income inequality really started in earnest.  I detect a pattern here…

        1. And what will GOP economic policies do to help those struggling to pull themselves out of poverty?  Absolutely nothing:

          The biggest losers, the report says, are young people who should not expect to become as rich as their parents. “Those with low wealth tend to be disproportionately found among the younger age groups, who have had little chance to accumulate assets,” Urs Rohner, Credit Suisse’s chairman, said. “But we find that millennials face particularly challenging circumstances.”

          Rohner, said millennials have been dealt a series of blows including high unemployment, tighter mortgage rules, increased income inequality and reduced pensions. “With baby boomers occupying most of the top jobs and much of the housing, millennials are doing less well than their parents at the same age, especially in relation to income, home ownership and other dimensions of well-being assessed in this report.”

          He said that millennials are much more educated than their parents. But he added: “We expect only a minority of high achievers and those in high demand sectors such a s technology or finance to effectively overcome the ‘millennial disadvantage’.”

          “The recent Paradise Papers revelations laid bare one of the main drivers of inequality – tax-dodging by rich individuals and multinationals. Governments should act to tackle extreme inequality that is undermining economies around the world, dividing societies and making it harder than ever for the poorest to improve their lives.

          1. Poor people need to make better choices in order to not be be poor anymore.

            #1.  Rich parents

            after that the impact is lessened significantly

    3. Yeah, Fluffy, Republicans value prosperity.  Why else would they jam a sloppily written tax bill through Congress that transfers 80% of the benefit to the already wealthy?

      The benefit or drawback of the senate plan relative to income levels (chart)

        1. Here's the link to the full article.  But the reason for the chart above is explained here:

          We took the midpoint for income in each group (for example, $15,000 for those earning between $10,000 and $20,000) and divided the overall effect on the group by that income amount. The result? As you can see in the next chart, the wealthy not only gain the most in dollar amounts but they also gain the most relative to their income.

          For instance, Americans making $10,000 to $20,000 would see barely any change — a loss worth just 0.14 percent of their income next year. But Americans making $500,000 to $1 million next year would see a net benefit that’s worth nearly 3 percent of their income.

          So the wealthy win in both absolute dollars but also as a percentage of their income.  Or as Fluffy might say — "a win-win, I don't see any problem…"

    4. So you're telling me that if I say to you, "Fuck you Moderatus" but then claim that I was trying to say, "I really hope you get laid tonight", it'd be okay with you?

      In that case, fuck you Moderatus.

    7. Moderatus —

      Good to hear that you (as a representative of the Republican Party) do not hate anyone for being poor.

      But if we are going to have "true dialogue," wouldn't it be helpful to know who was writing the comment?  So we could ask him (or her) about intent?

      And if Republicans value prosperity, what have they done to encourage it among the poor? Republicans loving the poor and helping the poor are good ideas … and I'd love to hear about them.  We'll wait for your extensive list of Republican policies to enhance the lives of the bottom quintile.

  3. Broyles' Facebook posts reveal a person who intentionally posts fake news (he congratulated a school resource officer in the Maryland school shooting for killing the shooter. Guess what – the shooter suicided, and the officer had nothing to do with it.

    He also posted about a Muslim killing his neighbor because the Koran told him to do so, while the Christian read his Bible to "love his neighbor".

    The comments on Broyles' page are brutal and to the point. He deserves all of them.

  4. None of you proved that he meant this the way it came out. Intentions do matter! I hop you are accused of this soon. I'll bet I can search this blog and find something similar.

    1. One thing I remember finding is "Repeal Obamacare.  There was no human crisis before it."  Even though "No Human Crisis" meant people getting denied coverage due to preexisting conditions.

       

      Still waiting for the proof that Obama acted illegally to create voter profiles.

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