Perhaps no single person has been more meaningfully defined in terms of his lying than Donald John Trump. He took it to a new level, never before seen, and that is certainly saying something. After all, we are talking about politicians, here.
But now, since Trump's disruption of the political arena, it appears to have become some sort of contest to see who can be the biggest, boldest, least controlled liar in the party. George Santos is on track to be the new leader in this regard.
Santos claimed work (and degrees) from two schools. They both dispute this claim. There is no record of him at either institution of higher learning. He "made a memorable speech at a high-level conference." Nope, never there. He worked for Goldman Sachs. Nope. His grandparents were Jews named Zabrovsky. Nope, and nope. Family survived the Holocaust. Nope. Family fled socialism. Nope. Mother was Belgian. Nope, born in Brazil. The man is a veritable trove of fabrications. Who started this? Who made this acceptable for government representatives? How did we let this become the new normal for our political representatives in Congress?
It is the new normal for the GOP. Lying has become their undeniable, unabashed unlimited trade mark. It has become their stock in trade. And yes, we can blame Donald Trump for this.
When Romney debated Obama, there were moments that stuck out, as Romney deliberately said things that ran counter to his own previous statements. Obvious lies. But it felt completely different than political lies of past occasions. It felt like the dawning of a new era. Well, Romney might never have realized what he was promoting, but Donald Trump was the benefactor of this new approach. Trump knew he could lie about literally anything, and usually did. He knew he could do this and do it with the straightest of faces. He had found his niche. So he took a walk down that escalator and into the history books.
That appears to be the model for Mister Santos, as well, soon to become Representative Santos, proudly waving his GOP status as a badge of honor. But the most telling of consequences falls in the lap of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, as he treads very dark water trying to become the new Republican Majority Leader. (Maybe he needs to learn how to lie more frequently?) McCarthy knows he probably can't get there without Santos' promised vote, so he won't sanction the new-normal liar for his lies. They are perfectly acceptable behavior now, not the least bit controversial. The landscape has changed. We have entered the world of lies as truths. The early promoters of the GOP must be very proud. So must the Founding Fathers of our nation.
Trump may have destroyed the Republican brand, but it is now up to all of us voters to determine if we are going to let people like Trump and Santos (and McCarthy) destroy our constitutional republic, as well. In the absence of much confidence, I sincerely hope we are up to the task.
