The sound of no hands clapping #TedCruz
by digby
Dave Weigel:
If, like many Americans, your job involves watching a lot of speeches by Ted Cruz, you have grown familiar with the Texas senator’s applause lines. Since October 2014, he has honed a list of “conservative agenda” items that can be punctuated with hoots, hollers, and huzzahs at any gathering on the right. Last month, at CPAC, he rattled them off in a friendly Q&A with Sean Hannity.
“Repeal every blasted word of Obamacare.”
“Abolish the IRS.”
“Take all 125,000 IRS agents and put ’em on our southern border.”
Each declaration sparked a roar of applause, acknowledged with a small smile from Cruz.
They love him.
More normal people, not so much:
Yesterday morning, Cruz entered the less friendly climate of the International Association of Firefighters, for its bipartisan presidential summit. Firefighters’ unions are not as solidly Democratic as most labor unions. In 2010, for example, Scott Walker won his first term as Wisconsin’s governor with the backing of the Milwaukee Professional Firefighters Association. (Walker was invited to the IAFF summit but skipped it.)
Still, the firefighters assembled to hear from possible presidents gave Cruz one of the coldest receptions he’s ever given before a camera.
Check out this compilation of some of his punch line duds:
You have to give him credit for going before a bunch of people who don’t spend every waking minute watching Fox news propaganda and using the same lines he used at CPAC. He’s consistent at least. But the confounded look on his face in that video suggests that old Ted may not be aware that he’s spouting far right talking points that don’t necessarily play with anyone but his own little clique. His bubble may be impenetrable.