I really wish that U.S. Rep. Becca Balint had said something short, sweet, and sacrilegious when VTDigger called to ask her about her recent deployment of the word “ass” in a public setting. I really wish she hadn’t taken the politic route and apologized.
Honestly, I don’t know why Digger even pursued this story. Well, that’s not true. I do know. It’s low-hanging fruit. But sometimes you need to leave that apple on the tree. Seriously, we’re talking about an organization that, so I’ve been told, hasn’t bothered to report on Lt. Gov. John Rodgers being a right royal asshat to his small-town neighbors, threatening to close access to a public road and take his town to court if they don’t accede to his wishes, because Digger doesn’t have the capacity.
And yet they had the capacity to publish a story on this ridiculous, trumped-up “controversy.” Ugh.
Balint, for those just tuning in, was speaking at a town hall event in Newport when a constituent asked about Trump’s immigration policies. She said that “our economy is completely bound up in immigration and migrant labor,” and added that we’re “not going have anyone around to wipe our asses” without legal immigrants.
OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Sorry, I clutched my pearls so hard the string broke and they bounced all over the room.
The Digger piece, which is thoroughly skippable, refers to “online backlash” following Balint’s remark. Sure, yes, “backlash” confined to, and amplified by, the conservative ecosystem whose lifeblood is manufactured outrage. This isn’t actual controversy, it’s ginned up for partisan purposes.
This is the ecosystem that eagerly supports a president who says more outrageous things every damn day and twice on Sunday. Let’s make this clear and obvious, because I guess it isn’t: WE DON’T HAVE TO TAKE THEM SERIOUSLY. WE DON’T HAVE TO ECHO AND AMPLIFY THEIR BULLSHIT. AND LEGITIMATE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS DON’T HAVE TO WASTE THEIR TIME AND CREDIBILITY FOLLOWING UP ON “CONTROVERSIES” MANUFACTURED FOR POLITICAL GAIN.
Be better, VTDigger.
And as for Rep. Balint: You just keep on being you. Don’t let the bastards grind you down.
The Vermont Political Observer. 
I started laughing when I saw all the Facebook comments. Who are these people? Do they even live in Vermont? And how many times has Trump used that word and worse? It’s all because she’s gay. I’ve seen the same commenters on Emma Mulvaney-Stanak’s Facebook page too. Disguised as worried about the City but they really just don’t like lesbians.
For a story that didn’t get much coverage and as a pretty thorough digger reader I had somehow missed, you certainly resuscitated it. An ironic twist to a “non-story”. In fact, isn’t it counterproductive to report on an underreported story that you think should have had less coverage than it received? That said, I think, personally, it did deserve to be reported. I like Becca B but it was a stupid, thoughtless, thing for her to say.
You have a high opinion of my reach, much higher than my own. I get 700-1,000 daily readers on average. Not sure what Digger’s figgers are, but it’s a lot more than that. Yes, I amplified the story a little bit, but I feel obligated to call out our media when they miss the mark, and that requires me to refer to their “bad” stories.
Seriously? Its not that she said a bad word, its that’s how liberals like Ballint view immigrants. She doesn’t want people to come here for a better life, she wants them to do the jobs that Americans won’t do. She said it. She wants immigrants to do the nasty jobs like milk cows and wipe butts. She’s not the only one. That’s why Biden never changed any of Trumps immigration policies other than to slap a rainbow sticker on the ICE cruiser. That’s why Tim Walz said during his debate with Vance that their policies aren’t that different. Check the numbers (you wont) If you think its about the words ass and not how the people that claim to want to protect immigrants really just want cheap labor, you’re kidding yourself.
You are so far off the mark that it’s not worth dissecting your comments.
no news view roundup this week?
I’m getting to it. Probably Tuesday. Still catching up from my conference trip last week.
“ liberals like Ballint view immigrants. She doesn’t want people to come here for a better life, she wants them to do the jobs that Americans won’t do.”
Speaking as a liberal and proud to be one, I will say that this statement is as false as any of Trump’s lies. Yet, I am also no fan of Balint, but that’s another story. While the statement is vastly wrong on how liberals “view immigrants,” she’s right that they do the jobs Americans won’t do. I’ve worked with some of the “illegals” before and they are the ones literally shoveling the shit all day for pay that is akin to wage slavery, no benefits or anything, paying taxes, and no American wants to do that for minimum wage or barely above it.
I actually think Chris Cosgrove has a big point, albeit an uncomfortable one. And that is, Rep. Balint’s comment reveals the underbelly of our economic system. And Liberals have benefited from it just like everyone else. I don’t hold it against her. But it should be a learning point for all of us. It’s sorta like…..”Who in the room here is racist?” Answer: “everyone with light skin.” Reason: We’ve all benefited from policies and process and procedures based in racist reasoning. it’s so ingrained we’ve lost track of where it all came from. Let’s know it and create change.
What Rep. Balint’s comment reveals (and she’s far from the only one to make it) is what tariffs will reveal. We’ve been benefiting for years from cheap labor here and abroad. And difficult working conditions, too.
I could care less if Rep. Balint’s cussed. She’s entitled; she sees a lot of baloney underway and she’s on the front lines of Congressional push-back. I’m proud of her being there, and I honor her courage. As a liberal, I feel protective toward her, but not to the point of avoid a learning opportunity.
All of us have to reckon with the incredible inequality of this economy, how we got here, and where we go next. She reminded us of it, possibly in the midst of a frustrated audience.