Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) spoke out against House Republicans for shifting away from their principles and towards the ideological center, as a response to their Democratic counterparts embracing far-left ideas, in a tweet sent out on Monday.
“Side effect of House Democrats embracing full bore socialism, no borders, 3rd trimester abortions, gun bans, & fiscal insanity:
Some House Republicans now feel safer embracing partial socialism, porous borders, 2nd trimester abortions, gun control, & fiscal irresponsibility,” he wrote.
The strong result for Democrats in the 2018 mid-term elections resulted in many far-left figures being swept into the 116th Congress, particularly in the U.S. House of Representatives. In recent months, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) have dominated headlines with their provocative rhetoric and hardline policy stances.
Even mainstream Democrats, eager to placate supporters of the anti-Trump Resistance movement, have embraced radical proposals such as the Green New Deal (GND). The latest iteration of the GND, which was unveiled by Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep. Ocasio-Cortez last week, has already been backed by leading presidential contenders from the establishment wing of the Democratic Party such as Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ).
While President Donald Trump has doubled down and sought to push back on this wave, many House Republicans saw the 2018 results as a sign that they too need to shift to the left.
“Some of [the Freedom Caucus members] lost seats that were very safe,” said Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). “But it was kind of the policies that they wouldn’t let go through of why they lost. And I think those seats are better for us to win, but also the quality of the candidate will matter more.”
