Forget "Weird." Let's Talk "Dangerous." (Part 1)

Tim Walz got traction by calling Republicans "weird." But leaving it at "weird" lets Republicans off the hook. They're much worse.

The word “weird” has gotten a lot of traction lately. Tim Walz has described several Republicans as weird, and he’s applied that term to their policies and belief systems, as well. For those who have been on the fence about the upcoming election, that may be a good point of entry to begin to question not only 2024 GOP orthodoxy but also the candidates themselves.

But “weird” barely scratches the surface. More importantly, in some ways, it shortchanges the Democrats’ arguments about the serious risks of another term of an out of control leader supported by the spineless political party that has done virtually nothing to stop him. “Weird” fails to take into account how extreme the GOP has become under Trump’s spell. Characterizing too many things as “weird” obfuscates the underlying danger of the autocracy that Trump lusts for.

Harris/Walz campaign has made joy their trademark. But there’s a risk failing to highlight the specific dangers of a second Trump term. Here’s a sampling:

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