The GOP stereotyping Irish people on St. Patrick's Day

[Bidenworth2020]

Beto IS a poser, of course, but he's been honest about his background.

The responses to the tweet are hysterical.  The Democrats really don't want us to "go there" with Rep. Mel "Sex Offender" Reynolds (D-IL) or Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL) or Rep. "Ozzie" Myers (D-PA) of Abscam fame (who said to an FBI agent "Money talks and bulls--r walks.) on tape.  Or Gerry Studds (D-MA) who had sex with an underage male page while serving in the House.  

People do need to "lighten up".  It is, after all, St. Paddy's Day, and . . .

Please tell me how Beto is a "poser".

He's taken on an Hispanic nickname when he's not Hispanic, likely for political reasons.

It's not the end of the World.  His campaign quickly tweeted out a pic of him as a little kid with "Beto" on it.  Whatever the genesis of this, it is kind of weird.  Of course, he was running against Ted Cruz, who's considered an HP by stalwart Republicans, so he gets some slack.

This issue has been cleared up and then some. He was given this name from a young age, and he shouldn't change it just so it doesn't appear as though he is pandering.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Beto IS a poser, of course, but he's been honest about his background.

The responses to the tweet are hysterical.  The Democrats really don't want us to "go there" with Rep. Mel "Sex Offender" Reynolds (D-IL) or Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL) or Rep. "Ozzie" Myers (D-PA) of Abscam fame (who said to an FBI agent "Money talks and bulls--r walks.) on tape.  Or Gerry Studds (D-MA) who had sex with an underage male page while serving in the House.  

People do need to "lighten up".  It is, after all, St. Paddy's Day, and . . .

Please tell me how Beto is a "poser".

He's taken on an Hispanic nickname when he's not Hispanic, likely for political reasons.

It's not the end of the World.  His campaign quickly tweeted out a pic of him as a little kid with "Beto" on it.  Whatever the genesis of this, it is kind of weird.  Of course, he was running against Ted Cruz, who's considered an HP by stalwart Republicans, so he gets some slack.

This issue has been cleared up and then some. He was given this name from a young age, and he shouldn't change it just so it doesn't appear as though he is pandering.

We are ever so protective of our precious narratives, aren't we?

[💥💥 brandon bro (he/him/his)]

Small brain: this is bad because it makes fun of Irish people

Medium brain: this is fine because Irish people make fun of themselves

Galaxy brain: this is bad because it's pretty obvious race-baiting

Beto IS a poser, of course, but he's been honest about his background.

The responses to the tweet are hysterical.  The Democrats really don't want us to "go there" with Rep. Mel "Sex Offender" Reynolds (D-IL) or Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL) or Rep. "Ozzie" Myers (D-PA) of Abscam fame (who said to an FBI agent "Money talks and bulls--r walks.) on tape.  Or Gerry Studds (D-MA) who had sex with an underage male page while serving in the House.  

People do need to "lighten up".  It is, after all, St. Paddy's Day, and . . .

Please tell me how Beto is a "poser".

He's taken on an Hispanic nickname when he's not Hispanic, likely for political reasons.

It's not the end of the World.  His campaign quickly tweeted out a pic of him as a little kid with "Beto" on it.  Whatever the genesis of this, it is kind of weird.  Of course, he was running against Ted Cruz, who's considered an HP by stalwart Republicans, so he gets some slack.

Hook, line, sinker.

[AtorBoltox]

Conservatives are really going old school with their racism

[GAProgressive]

So we all agree that if Cuomo ran, the GOP would photoshop him into looking like a mafioso, right?

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

So we all agree that if Cuomo ran, the GOP would photoshop him into looking like a mafioso, right?

As the ultimate arbiter of what it is okay to get offended about and the #1 defender of the Italian race, I give this my seal of approval. If they said the g-word in the meme text, that would make it a bit iffy, but I still probably wouldn't care if it was funny enough.

[Devout Centrist]

This is typical of the GOP being the party of exclusion and moving backwards. However, I never thought they would move so far backwards that they would start gleefully dredging up stereotypes about white European ethnicities and potentially alienating them. Even I thought they were beyond that because they're white. So, who's next? The Italians? The Polish? Scandinavians?

Not everything has to be taken so seriously. Lighten up.

What would the Democrats do in a World Without Victims?

Sanctimony is a sin, Mr. Bear

[dead0man]

Pleased to say I'm not seeing people wearing green in Minneapolis because it's a stupid f[inks]ing "holiday".

Damned Irish coming over here, bringing their crime, alcoholism, and popery. What next? Italians!?

no, Italians are WAY more sensitive about it.  They get defensive even when the rest of us make fun of Columbus or their overrated food.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Nooooo, I don't want to like something the GOP does

Thank you for openly admitting your anti-Irish bigotry.

I honestly didn't care about Ireland or Irish culture until I saw how the most vocal people about it were often also PRO-IRA edgelords. Thankfully Beto is not such a person.

BTW the first person I voted for President has the same last name as a county in Ireland.

Fun fact: Kerry isn't actually Irish-American. His paternal family were Austrian Jewish converts to Catholicism who anglicized the name from Kohn and his mother was a WASP.

[Ban my account ffs!]

Nooooo, I don't want to like something the GOP does

Thank you for openly admitting your anti-Irish bigotry.

LOL I made basically the same post on AAD and guess who liked it?

oakvale

Oakvale is obv fake Irish.  He can GO EAT A POTATO.

[Ban my account ffs!]

Nooooo, I don't want to like something the GOP does

Thank you for openly admitting your anti-Irish bigotry.

I honestly didn't care about Ireland or Irish culture until I saw how the most vocal people about it were often also PRO-IRA edgelords. Thankfully Beto is not such a person.

BTW the first person I voted for President has the same last name as a county in Ireland.

Fun fact: Kerry isn't actually Irish-American. His paternal family were Austrian Jewish converts to Catholicism who anglicized the name from Kohn and his mother was a WASP.

We thought our last name was Irish for the longest time.  Turns out it originated in Switzerland.

[Mr. Morden]

Nooooo, I don't want to like something the GOP does

Thank you for openly admitting your anti-Irish bigotry.

I honestly didn't care about Ireland or Irish culture until I saw how the most vocal people about it were often also PRO-IRA edgelords. Thankfully Beto is not such a person.

BTW the first person I voted for President has the same last name as a county in Ireland.

Fun fact: Kerry isn't actually Irish-American. His paternal family were Austrian Jewish converts to Catholicism who anglicized the name from Kohn and his mother was a WASP.

Yeah, I don't think Kerry has any (recent) Irish ancestry at all.

And for that matter, Beto O'Rourke really doesn't have all that much Irish ancestry either.  His paternal great great grandfather was born in Ireland, so I guess he's at least 1/16th Irish.  But if you look at his family tree, most of the rest of his great great grandparents were born in the US, many having American roots going back to Colonial times.  He's probably more English than Irish.

[Cold War Liberal]

He's taken on an Hispanic nickname when he's not Hispanic, likely for political reasons.

It's not the end of the World.  His campaign quickly tweeted out a pic of him as a little kid with "Beto" on it.  Whatever the genesis of this, it is kind of weird.  Of course, he was running against Ted Cruz, who's considered an HP by stalwart Republicans, so he gets some slack.

https://twitter.com/BetoORourke/status/971467245477081092

I'm sure he was thinking of how he could best appeal to the Hispanic vote in 2020 all the way back in 1976. You know, when he was 4 and when the Latinx vote made up a whopping 1% of voters in the 1976 exit polls. Makes sense.

Also, "noted" Cuban-Canadian Rafael Cruz took on a white nickname when he is not white, DEFINITELY for political purposes (he says he switched to "Ted" in grade school but selectively used "Rafael" in college journals geared towards Hispanic people, if I recall correctly). I would not go as far as to say he is a "poser," though. I don't feel like explaining racial code-switching to an old guy.

[Idaho Conservative]

It's funny when liberals get offended for another group when said group isn't offended.  It's called a joke.

[progressive85]

It's funny when liberals get offended for another group when said group isn't offended.  It's called a joke.

The "joke" wasn't funny.  It was humorless, just like the Conservatives.

[Idaho Conservative]

It's funny when liberals get offended for another group when said group isn't offended.  It's called a joke.

The "joke" wasn't funny.  It was humorless, just like the Conservatives.

Whether a joke is funny is a matter of opinion.  You've already made it abundantly clear yu are offended.  Are you even Irish?

[Progressive Pessimist]

This is typical of the GOP being the party of exclusion and moving backwards. However, I never thought they would move so far backwards that they would start gleefully dredging up stereotypes about white European ethnicities and potentially alienating them. Even I thought they were beyond that because they're white. So, who's next? The Italians? The Polish? Scandinavians?

Not everything has to be taken so seriously. Lighten up.

Okay fine. Hardy f***ing har har. I have the sense of humor of a twelve year old and just love lazy jokes about negative ethnic stereotypes from a major political institution's Twitter! I'm not Irish so apparently that means that I can't find a problem with it! Is that "lightened up" enough for you?

[Fuzzy Bear]

He's taken on an Hispanic nickname when he's not Hispanic, likely for political reasons.

It's not the end of the World.  His campaign quickly tweeted out a pic of him as a little kid with "Beto" on it.  Whatever the genesis of this, it is kind of weird.  Of course, he was running against Ted Cruz, who's considered an HP by stalwart Republicans, so he gets some slack.

https://twitter.com/BetoORourke/status/971467245477081092

I'm sure he was thinking of how he could best appeal to the Hispanic vote in 2020 all the way back in 1976. You know, when he was 4 and when the Latinx vote made up a whopping 1% of voters in the 1976 exit polls. Makes sense.

Also, "noted" Cuban-Canadian Rafael Cruz took on a white nickname when he is not white, DEFINITELY for political purposes (he says he switched to "Ted" in grade school but selectively used "Rafael" in college journals geared towards Hispanic people, if I recall correctly). I would not go as far as to say he is a "poser," though. I don't feel like explaining racial code-switching to an old guy.

Ted's worse than a poser.  I'm not a fan.  It's just that after being in the limelight, Ted has seemingly disappeared from the stage.  He's just another Senator now; almost a backbencher.

[Cold War Liberal]

It's funny when liberals get offended for another group when said group isn't offended.  It's called a joke.

My Great-great-grandmother came here from Ireland sometime in the days of Ellis Island. I’m not “offended” in the sense that I got genuinely angry about the tweet, but it was needlessly dick¡sh, on a holiday that in the US uses my heritage to justify acting according the the worst stereotypes about people like me. Seeing as I’ve never faced real discrimination for my ethnicity like, say, a second generation Mexican immigrant or someone descended from African slaves might, it’s not that big a deal to me. More annoying than anything.

He's taken on an Hispanic nickname when he's not Hispanic, likely for political reasons.

It's not the end of the World.  His campaign quickly tweeted out a pic of him as a little kid with "Beto" on it.  Whatever the genesis of this, it is kind of weird.  Of course, he was running against Ted Cruz, who's considered an HP by stalwart Republicans, so he gets some slack.

-tweet snipped-

I'm sure he was thinking of how he could best appeal to the Hispanic vote in 2020 all the way back in 1976. You know, when he was 4 and when the Latinx vote made up a whopping 1% of voters in the 1976 exit polls. Makes sense.

Also, "noted" Cuban-Canadian Rafael Cruz took on a white nickname when he is not white, DEFINITELY for political purposes (he says he switched to "Ted" in grade school but selectively used "Rafael" in college journals geared towards Hispanic people, if I recall correctly). I would not go as far as to say he is a "poser," though. I don't feel like explaining racial code-switching to an old guy.

Ted's worse than a poser.  I'm not a fan.  It's just that after being in the limelight, Ted has seemingly disappeared from the stage.  He's just another Senator now; almost a backbencher.

Is anyone, Republican, Democrat, or Independent, really a fan of Ted Cruz? Even most people who agree with his policies must find his personality awkward at best and odious at worst.

I would argue that Beto is many things, up to and potentially including a socioeconomically privileged man posing as someone who understands the struggle of the middle class for political gain (reminds me of our current president in that regard), but a white man posing as Hispanic he is not. He grew up among Hispanic people who gave him a Hispanic nickname perhaps because children are not as quick to divide people by race as adults. I can’t pretend to know how exactly he ascertained that nickname, but I cannot imagine it was politically motivated. Another mark against the “poser” narrative is that he speaks fluent Spanish, something a poser couldn’t be bothered to put the energy into learning.

[darklordoftech]

Would the GOP ever win another election if Irish Catholics became a Democratic voting bloc?

[RINO Tom]

Finally getting back to our heritage when we were the librual party!

[Technocracy Timmy]

Exactly which “Irish” people have been referenced in this thread?

The type of “Irish” people who were born and raised in America? Whose parents were also born and raised in America? And grandparents? And their great grandparents?

Just because your great great great great aunt Bessy had a tough time getting a job 150 years ago when she got off some boat from Ireland to America doesn’t make you Irish. There’s already a country called Ireland with actual Irish people.

[QAnonKelly]

I don’t care that they’re playing into the Irish stereotype. A ton of people in the US are of Irish descent and it’s been so long that most people aren’t “Irish”. I’m about a third Irish myself and 90% British overall but my mom’s family came from Ireland after the civil war.  I wouldn’t know anything about being Irish. That said, why are they bringing up his DUI? That’s the problem. I’m not defending him and there’s no excuse for him having done it but it was a long time ago, he’s apologized and never done it again. There plenty of Republicans who’ve had DUIs too. Matt Gaetz has some that are a lot more recent and he’s never apolozed and his daddy got him off the hook. Cheney and Bush have had them too.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Nooooo, I don't want to like something the GOP does

Thank you for openly admitting your anti-Irish bigotry.

I honestly didn't care about Ireland or Irish culture until I saw how the most vocal people about it were often also PRO-IRA edgelords. Thankfully Beto is not such a person.

BTW the first person I voted for President has the same last name as a county in Ireland.

Yes, and Calvin Candie had a black friend.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

I don’t care that they’re playing into the Irish stereotype. A ton of people in the US are of Irish descent and it’s been so long that most people aren’t “Irish”. That said, why are they bringing up his DUI? That’s the problem. I’m not defending him and there’s no excuse for him having done it but it was a long time ago, he’s apologized and never done it again. There plenty of Republicans who’ve had DUIs too. Matt Gaetz has some that are a lot more recent and he’s never apolozed and his daddy got him off the hook. Cheney and Bush have had them too.