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One of Andrew Sullivan’s readers writes about the antics of congressional Republicans during Obama’s speech last night:

Yes, the GOP of 2009 is the party of torture and fiscal recklessness. But as Joe Wilson’s outburst last night made clear, it is every bit as much the party of the College Republicans.

….Juvenile, manipulative, impossibly smarmy, hateful — or at least more than willing to use the weapon of other people’s hate — and, above all, relentlessly cynical. To these (mostly) men, politics is not the “art of the possible”, not a means for peaceably grappling with the most difficult and complex issues of the day, or for attempting to improve the lives of people you will never meet. It is nothing but a game, one where the object is not just to win but to destroy your enemies with a weird mix of angry slander and junior high insults — and to have a good chuckle while admiring your handiwork.

“Swimming With Sharks,” Frank Foer’s 2005 article about the College Republicans, is one of the best political pieces I’ve ever read.  If you didn’t see it back when it came out, do yourself a favor and read it now.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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