[View here as a Twitter thread]
WaPo reports that Dobbs “casually” invents an outrageous lie.
Remember: Many of Fox’s hardcore viewers / MAGA types know that Dobb’s statement isn’t true. But they embrace the lie because it gets to what Sarah Sanders calls a deeper or “important” truth.
The lie about the “millions of illegal voters” gets to what really bothers Dobbs and other MAGA people about the Democratic Party: The diversity, which they see as displacing “real” Americans (white men).
@jasonintraderexplains that white men feel victimized when minorities and women gain power: principles of equality make them feel they’re are suffering a personal loss. Before the 1950s power was largely in the hands of white men. (Their crisis started with Brown v. Board)
So the lie about “millions of illegal immigrants voting” is really about how “real” Americans are being displaced by “others.” The Democrats are the enemies because they promote minorities and women’s rights. So they want to rile the Democrats and trample the new rules.
Timothy Snyder explains that they enjoy the spectacle of a strongman trampling norms and doing things like telling outrageous lies. As D’Souza writes in Letters to a Young Conservative, one way to be effective is figure out what disturbs liberals the most, and keep doing it.
One method of undermining factuality is to wear everyone out with a daily cycle of outrage. Eventually people give up. They conclude truth is not knowable. “Our guys lie, but so do the enemies. We prefer our lies to their lies.” It’s the ultimate in tribalism & relativism.
OK, so how do we fight it? Point out the lie, but don’t get caught into the cycle of outrage and spectacle. Find ways to promote truth. Timothy Snyder suggests this: Retweet and subscribe to quality investigative journalism. Pick your favorite reporters and support them.
Investigative journalism is expensive for publications. If you can afford it, subscribe. If not, promote and retweet true investigative journalism. This tweet got lots of exposure: Notice “can” and “might have.” This isn’t investigative reporting. This is speculation.
