IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Recession Rod is taking heat from every direction. The latest salvo is a scathing editorial that explores Blum’s misunderstanding of economics, local funding sources, and how not to be a total embarrassment on social media.
—
Editorial: On Twitter, Rod Blum shamed Iowa
Quad-City Times
Congrats, U.S. Rep. Rod Blum. You’re the latest entry into the Hall of Elected Officials Making Fools of Themselves on Social Media.
No, Blum, R-Iowa, didn’t post pictures of his privates to his personal Twitter account, a la former Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y. Last week, Blum did something potentially more nefarious, considering he’s a member of Congress and all.
Blum was traveling through Washington, not far from the Capital’s $2 billion reconstruction of its wharf. Blum saw a slew of cranes at the project site. And they looked expensive, which really annoyed the congressional freshman.
So, Blum took to his personal Twitter account and let loose.
“Washington DC (sic) is booming. Tower cranes everywhere. Being built on the backs of US taxpayers. DC needs a recession,” he tweeted with a picture of the apparently offensive construction site. Moments later, Blum’s bizarre rant was retweeted by his official congressional feed.
Apparently, Blum’s staffers also agree that Washington’s 700,000 residents deserve a crushing economic collapse.
Blum clearly misunderstands how local funding works. The Wharf is, after all, a local project, funded by private investors and local taxpayers. Sure, the public bit is considered “federal,” but only because all of Washington’s local revenue must pass through congressional coffers due to its unique district status.
The fine people of Washington, who Blum apparently finds undeserving of downtown revitalization, schooled the confused Republican from Dubuque.
“@RodBlum lol that’s not how the economy of DC works,” tweeted one angry but informed dissenter.
“@RodBlum I live in DC and don’t have a voice in Congress. My federal taxes pay for your corn subsidies!” said another.
The Washington Post blasted Blum’s nonsensical scapegoating across the Internet, garnering substantial annoyance with a heavy pinch of chiding at Blum’s inability to understand local government.
Iowa already has one irrational bombast in Rep. Steve King, a man whose entire career is built on dehumanizing millions of immigrants. The Hawkeye State doesn’t need another such embarrassment.
Attacking federal waste is a tried and true, base-riling tactic. Clearly, Blum intended to exemplify lavish federal spending with his ill-conceived tweet. But the facts got in the way. People actually live in Washington. People actually pay federal and local taxes in Washington. The U.S. Capital even touts a functioning city council.
Blum isn’t the first elected official to fall into the react-without-thinking social media trap.
Earlier this month, Sen. Mark Kirk’s campaign upped the myopia ante by saying on social media that Democratic challenger, Rep. Tammy Duckworth, doesn’t “stand up for veterans.” Duckworth uses a wheelchair after losing her legs while serving in Iraq.
But, in Kirk’s case, the incredible tone-deafness came from campaign staff. Blum used his personal Twitter account to advocate for the failure of Washington’s economy.
Blum, in a tough re-election fight, hoped to make a statement about wasteful federal spending. He hoped to engender “Bridge to Nowhere” levels of frustration within Iowa’s 1st Congressional District.
Instead, he laid bare his brand of web-based, reactionary politics of division: The degradation of fellow Americans is fair game when scoring political points outweighs all other considerations.
###