DeSantis's cruel Martha's Vineyard stunt is a prime example of MAGA vice signaling

[Nevilledog]

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.@nberlat: “[DeSantis’] ultimate message is simple; he is saying that he, DeSantis, is not a hypocrite, because he, DeSantis, hates openly. He is engaged in what some have called “vice signaling”.| @atrupar

aaronrupar.substack.com
DeSantis's cruel Martha's Vineyard stunt is a prime example of MAGA vice signaling
They're desperate to demonstrate that everyone is as immoral as they are.
3:25 PM · Sep 21, 2022

https://aaronrupar.substack.com/p/desantis-marthas-vineyard-vice-signaling

When you hear the phrase “both sides,” it’s generally because you’re talking about the (frustrating, deceptive) media strategy of providing equal weight to the views of both parties, regardless of morality or truth. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s gleefully sadistic human trafficking conspiracy, however, illustrates that “both sides” is not just a failure of journalism. It’s also a fascist tactic. Which means that when politics is framed solely in terms of partisanship and power, the result is not neutrality, but a victory for the worst people in the world.

The exact details of DeSantis’s scheme are still emerging. But what we know already is bad enough. Last week, he used funds earmarked to remove migrants from Florida to round up around fifty immigrants in San Antonio, Texas. His agents put them on two planes to Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts at a cost of about $600,000 in tax dollars. The migrants are mostly Venezuelan refugees who entered the US legally.

DeSantis did not contact anyone in Martha’s Vineyard, according to local officials, so no one had resources — like shelter — to help the people when they arrived. DeSantis claims the immigrants got on the planes voluntarily. But immigrants interviewed say that they were told they were heading to Boston. Judd Legum at Popular Information obtained a brochure given to the migrants that said that when they arrived there were programs to assure them “8 months cash assistance” as well as aid for housing, food, and clothing. This was all a lie.

Deceiving people to transport them for exploitation is human trafficking. Authorities in Massachusetts and Texas have duly launched criminal investigations into DeSantis’ vicious political stunt.

So, what does DeSantis hope to accomplish that’s worth putting himself in legal jeopardy?

The main goal obviously is raising his political profile for a 2024 presidential run. But the more immediate justification is to claim his political enemies are as morally debased as he is. It’s “both sides.”

*snip*

[yonder]

1. K&R

This rings the bell for me:

"...when politics is framed solely in terms of partisanship and power, the result is not neutrality, but a victory for the worst people in the world."

[Hermit-The-Prog]

2. DeSantis is typical of the Republican party. Choose