In case you’re still waiting for your Right-wing Logic Decoder Ring from Ovaltine, you should know that the latest existential threat to the republic is—wait for it—drag queens!
Earlier this week, a Texas state representative introduced a bill that would prohibit anyone under 18 from attending a drag show, suggesting that seeing a man in high heels is at least as objectionable as watching your classmates murdered in front of you by an 18-year-old maniac with an AR-15.
Drag queens, according to the right, are a clear and present danger to the nation because, with the notable exceptions of Jack Lemmon and Bugs Bunny, men dressing as women will make even the most redoubtable kiddies’ brains burst open like glitter bombs.
Well, now Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is getting in on the action, because if there’s a fatuous, inconsequential point to be made, Ron will be all over it like white on Mike Pence.
LBGTQ Nation:
Yesterday, Gov. DeSantis said that he wants CPS to investigate parents who take kids to drag shows after a family-friend drag show took place in Dallas over the weekend. He said that “very young kids, and they must have been like 9, 10 years old, at a quote, ‘drag show,’ where they were putting money in the underwear of this…” which is a pretty strong allegation.
LGBTQ Nation‘s John Russell emailed [DeSantis press secretary Christina] Pushaw to ask what DeSantis was referring to, and she responded with a picture of a cisgender woman.
But instead of leaving it there, Pushaw decided to take her false statements to Twitter.
Yes, yes she did. Of course, Pushaw’s Twitter, like that of so many clout-chasing right-wingers, is normally a vile pile of bigotry and disinformation, so tweeting falsehoods is a daily event for her.
Oh, checkmate, huh, Pushaw? And by “checkmate,” I mean you should have checked if that was really a mate before tweeting—because she’s actually a maiden.
Trans journalist and attorney Alejandra Caraballo also notes that not only is that “drag queen” actually a cisgender woman, the (cropped) image was pulled from a “Nazi meme” that dates back three years.
That’s New Orleans-based and world-famous burlesque performer Bella Blue, who Caraballo correctly states is a cisgender woman. It’s unclear if Pushaw scoured the internet herself to find this disingenuous morsel of tripe or if one of the right-wing army’s flying monkeys did it. Either way, they’ve once again proved that pretty much all Republican solutions require a rich, loamy topsoil of made-up problems in which to thrive.
Of course, Pushaw’s boss—DeSantis—didn’t seem to care a whit when children were actually in danger from COVID-19, but he’s pulling out all the stops to keep them from learning that Liberace was gay or that men occasionally wear clothes that are typically worn by women. But hey, he’s got priorities—and one of those is making sure he ingratiates himself with as many Trump voters as he can before Donald Trump’s heart explodes out of his chest like a piñata stuffed with Quarter Pounders. And the way to do that? Be as meretricious and histrionic as humanly possible.
Meanwhile, we’re also learning that Pushaw has applied her finely honed bullshitting skills to overseas work—without telling anyone, of course. It appears that secretly acting as a foreign agent is fast becoming a popular Republican hobby, much like attempting to end American democracy.
The Washington Post:
A spokeswoman for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) this week registered as a foreign agent of a former president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili, belatedly detailing work she performed for the politician between 2018 and 2020.
The spokeswoman, Christina Pushaw, made the disclosure following contact from the Justice Department, according to her attorney, Michael Sherwin. She began her work in 2018 as a volunteer in the post-Soviet country, Sherwin said, and was ultimately paid $25,000 over the course of two years. She received her first payment, of $10,000 in October 2018, in cash, according to her filing. She stayed for free for six weeks in an apartment owned by a Saakashvili associate in Tbilisi, the Georgian capital.
According to a statement from Pushaw’s lawyer, Pushaw’s work included “writing op-eds, reaching out to supporters and officials, and advocating on [Saakashvili’s] behalf in Georgia and in the United States.” So she was paid $25,000 in part for her op-eds, even though her opinion is clearly worthless.
According to Pushaw’s LinkedIn profile, she joined the governor’s office in May 2021 after her time as director of a nonprofit “focused on empowering youth through education and professional development opportunities” based in Tbilisi. She also lists experience as a campaign strategist for a Georgian opposition party and, on other social media, has identified that party as the United National Movement, which Saakashvili once chaired.
The Tampa Bay Times offers more on Pushaw’s rapid (as in, less than two months) ascent from everyday shitposter to DeSantis’ official one.
On March 19, Christina Pushaw wrote an email to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ then-press secretary. She was ready to make a move.
[...]
“If there are any openings on the governor’s comms team, I would love to throw my hat in the ring,” Pushaw wrote. She attached her resume to the email, which was obtained by the Times/Herald in a records request.
It’s unclear who in the governor’s office saw Pushaw’s note, but it appears to have been received quite well. About six weeks later, the governor’s office sent her pre-employment paperwork to fill out. By May 10, she had the job of press secretary. Her salary is $120,000 per year.
[...]
It wasn’t Pushaw’s work abroad that appears to have put her on the radar of the DeSantis administration, however. It was Pushaw’s coverage of [Florida Department of Health whistleblower Rebekah] Jones.
Pushaw’s unsolicited resume also includes a stint at the Koch-funded Stand Together, and touted her work “ghostwriting” for Saakashvili. America really is the land of opportunity, isn’t it?
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