I'd say one of the the big winners of the conservative movement since 2004 is Ann Coulter, because now almost every Republican politician sounds just as demented as she does.
Case in point: Rep. Tom Cotton, who's running for the Senate in the state of Arkansas just came up with a melding of immigration and terrorist fears into one campaign talking point.
Exhibit A: GOP Rep. Tom Cotton, who is running for Senate in Arkansas. The Congressman told a tele-town-hall meeting that the Islamic State is actively working with Mexican drug cartels who are looking to expand into the terrorism business — and that the groups, working in tandem, could infiltrate the country and attack people in Arkansas.
On audio of the town-hall, which was recorded by Arkansas Democrats, the key moment comes at around the 10:50 mark. Cotton was asked by a voter why the children crossing the border were allowed to stay for months (presumably while awaiting a court date). Cotton launched into a long answer about amnesty and the need to build a border fence, and added (emphasis mine):
“The problem is with Mark Pryor and Barack Obama refusing to enforce our immigration laws, and refusing to secure our border. I’ll change that when I’m in the United States Senate. And I would add, it’s not just an immigration problem. We now know that it’s a security problem. Groups like the Islamic State collaborate with drug cartels in Mexico who have clearly shown they’re willing to expand outside the drug trade into human trafficking and potentially even terrorism.
“They could infiltrate our defenseless border and attack us right here in places like Arkansas. This is an urgent problem and it’s time we got serious about it, and I’ll be serious about it in the United States Senate.”I hadn’t heard this version of this claim before, so I asked the Cotton campaign for back-up. Cotton spokesman David Ray pointed me to a series of articles from conservative media, which you can read here, here, here,here, here, and here.
Even though this doomsday scenario of ISIS and drug cartels has been thoroughly debunked, the conservarazzi have continued to perpetuate this nonsense to their rubes. but to hear a Senate candidate repeat these John Bircheresque claims really puts into perspective how far the GOP has fallen. They do have policies to run on for the midterms and all they consist of is irrational fears and conspiracy theories.
