When “America First” Is An Excuse for Nativism

Representative Majorie Taylor Greene’s attempt at “unity” is the exact opposite. 

By Riley Mulcahy 
Opinion Columnist 
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The word patriotism is one of the most misconstrued and misunderstood terms in American politics today. The Republican Party has tainted the image of Uncle Sam, deep respect for our troops serving overseas, and pride for being an American. Recently, outspoken QAnon supporter Representative Majorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) announced the intent to start an “American First” caucus. However, it is not evident that Greene puts America first, or at least the America a majority of Americans would like to be a part of. 

Before being elected to the House of Representatives, Greene was known for chasing down David Hogg, a high school student, when his classmate who survived the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman High School. Greene asked triggering questions and statements to Hogg, accusing him of being a crisis actor and the outcome if Hogg had befriended the shooter. Instead of being condemned when she ran to be a Congresswoman, her district in Georgia embraced her. 

The notion that anyone in the Republican Party, let alone Greene, is terrifying. This is the party that fought tooth and nail to resist giving stimulus checks to millions of people during the middle of a global pandemic, supported a president who admitted in a recording that he “played down” the pandemic to the reporter who took Nixon down.

The party that wants to be known as one who represents “family values” repeatedly proves that they do not wish to care for families. Last week, Biden announced that part of his tax increases for those who make 400,000 dollars and more and corporations would go towards universal childcare. Although the “pro-life” stances of the Republican Party would logically align with policies that support children and working families, they argued that the spending would only support the middle-class and wealthy families. 

Greene’s latest attempt to stir up controversy is just that, and there is no need for Democrats to give it much thought. Even though it is easy to dismiss it as ludicrous, there is a population that supports Greene’s conspiracies. However, there should be more education about debunking the outrageous conspiracy theories Greene proudly supports. 

The more vulgar and outlandish the Republican Party has gotten, they have reached more support. However, it must be noted that the majority of Americans support bold, progressive ideas that negate the beliefs of the modern Republican Party. The problem is not that conservative views are wrong; it is that the contemporary Republican Party, with the help of Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Greene, are helping the principle of fiscal conservatism. Furthermore, the party’s platform is not cohesive; besides a blind allegiance to Trump, obsession with control over women’s bodies, and the endless echo of “small government,” it is hard to tell what the modern Republican party stands for, let alone the notion of “America First.”

Greene’s mockery of a caucus will display rebellion against the Democratic-held Congress; however, their power will be questionable. The fact of the matter is that Greene’s party is not in control of anything in Washington. Their calls for controversial legislation will most likely die on the floor, given that Democrats have a slim majority both in the House and the Senate.

Democrats must continue to take bold action and follow Biden’s lead and ignore the “America First” caucus regarding their ridiculous antics. However, given the slim majority, Democrats must understand although they are the majority right now, given the rise of Trump, liberals can lose their power in 2022 and 2024. Instead of giving in to the minority party’s pleas for ideas that hurt the American people, Democrats should be focusing on how they maintain control in Congress and focus on passing meaningful legislation that will help the American people.