Dem
47
GOP
53
There are, of course, many Trumpy members of Congress who reflexively and loudly support anything Donald Trump says or does because he is, after all, the Dear Leader. A number of these folks are in the habit of supplementing their support with "facts," which—like many of the "facts" that Trump shares—are completely made up out of whole cloth. One of the worst offenders is Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-WY). There was a time when she was pretty much a normal Republican. However, once Hageman decided that her path to the promised land involved taking down then-Rep. Liz Cheney, and becoming the anti-Liz, such niceties were out the window. And these days, Hageman is 100% MAGA.
This week, the House Rules Committee, of which Hageman is a member, was meeting to discuss a resolution to officially rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. That resolution doesn't really change anything, since Trump already has the authority to order federal government maps to be changed, while any other maps are outside the purview of the federal government. In other words, the resolution, which ultimately did pass the House, is just a show bill. It will undoubtedly stun readers to learn that the main sponsor was Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
Anyhow, Hageman decided that she also wanted to get in on the show-horsery. She couldn't sponsor the bill, since Greene got there first, but she could use her committee time to make some MAGA noise. And so, she decreed:
I think another reason why we should change this to the Gulf of America versus the Gulf of Mexico is, for over 40 years, the country of Mexico has been dumping raw sewage into the area near San Diego, California. That's another reason we need to retake and claim ownership of this area. I was just in San Diego meeting with some folks down there, and they described the situation. It's an absolutely horrific, horrific situation. It is an environmental catastrophe and disaster created.
Is there anything here that's true and accurate? For example, did Hageman—who, again, represents Wyoming in the House—really visit San Diego for some fact-finding?
In any case, you don't exactly have to be Rand or McNally to realize that Hageman's geography is completely wrong, and makes no sense. San Diego is not on the Gulf of Mexico. San Diego is not CLOSE to the Gulf of Mexico. In fact, San Diego is about 1,500 miles away from the Gulf of Mexico. Put another way, the distance between New York City and Miami is smaller than the distance between San Diego and the Gulf of Mexico.
So, Hageman was left with some egg on her face. Good enough for her, if she's going to make up nonsense out of thin air. (Z)