Lately, I’ve been pretty adamant about the need for Republicans and conservatives to stop being a party of reactionism and begin going on the offensive.
Granted, “go on the offensive” is a pretty vague term. Nebulous battle plans aren’t really battle plans, so much as an idea for a direction to go. Safe to say, however, that there are plenty of examples to follow in terms of conservatism on the offensive. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis exhibits these things all the time with legislation that goes after the heart of woke culture. The suspension of a Soros-backed state prosecutor who was defying established Florida law so kids could get gender-reversing surgeries was a solid example. Stripping Disney of its tax benefits was another.
These are moves that do serious damage to the left. It’s not the calling of some kind of hearing where nothing really happens but politicians performing for social media. This is real action.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott is also doing something that could really damage the left with a very simple strategy; make the left live up to its self-professed virtues.
As my colleague Sister Toldja reported, Abbott recently sent a bus filled with illegal migrants to Chicago. This is something he’s been doing for a little while now. Sending illegal migrants to blue cities is something Abbott is being hailed for by everyone except Democrats, especially leftist officials.
(READ: Greg Abbott Springs an Unwelcome but Well-Deserved Surprise on Lori Lightfoot)
The move is genius because this is Abbott making Democrats live up to their professed beliefs, which is something Democrats rarely ever want to do.
The trouble with virtue signaling is that eventually, you’re going to have to put your money where your mouth is. During the presidency of Donald Trump, many blue cities wanted to sound defiant and brave, declaring their cities “sanctuary cities” where illegal immigrants looking for a better life would be safe from law enforcement. While Trump was president, this was easy to say since his ability to keep border crossings to a minimum didn’t result in too many migrants plaguing their cities.
Fast forward to today and we have an open border under the Biden administration where thousands of migrants stream across on the regular. It’s a very serious problem that border states like Texas have to deal with while northern cities suffer very little. Meanwhile, the leaders of these cities virtue signal about their care and concern for these poor migrants just looking to escape the poverty and corruption of their own countries. They proclaim anyone who complains about it is just racist xenophobes.
Abbott’s move is to make them live up to their own virtue, which they clearly aren’t. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot spoke like she would welcome them with open arms but the moment they got off the bus there was no one there to greet them, help them, or anything.
This has two benefits, though they’re sadly come by.
For one, illegal migrants walking around Chicago will cause a shift in attitudes in some regard. Whether they like to admit it or not, a growing population of illegal migrants has an effect on the city’s economy and crime. While crime in Chicago is already horrendous, a new source isn’t going to make people feel any better about the way things are going. They will begin looking for a solution and it’s clear that Lightfoot and the Democrat leadership won’t be willing to provide it.
Secondly, the whole nation can now see that these Democrats who love to preach about having open arms for any and all from out of this country clearly don’t have that kind of care in them. It was all a show. These people are frauds, and while that won’t convince the die-hards, there are plenty of people in this country who still run on common sense.
Abbott forced Democrats to step up and put their money where their mouth is and they clearly do not want to.
This strategy is an easy one to adopt. Find something the left truly believes they’re virtuous about and make them live up to it. Put the ball in their court then sit back and watch their reaction. Record and document. Show everyone.
Break the spell.