Mitch McConnell

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s chins are wobbling with faked-up outrage over “toxic fringe behavior” by Democrats. In an obvious and cynical campaign ploy from a master of cynical legislative ploys, McConnell’s supposed outrage focuses on protesters against the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.

McConnell described protesters “literally storming the steps of the Capitol and the Supreme Court,” confronting Republicans at restaurants and shouting from the Senate visitors’ galleries during last week’s debate and vote on Kavanaugh.

The horror! The horror! People went to the public buildings where decisions were being made and protested those decisions—with shouting! Republicans couldn’t even eat their fancy restaurant meals in peace while moving forward the nomination of a man they’d refused to have fully investigated for sexual assault. I mean, can you even believe the rudeness?

“Only one side was happy to play host to this toxic fringe behavior,” McConnell said. “Only one side’s leaders are now openly calling for more of it. They haven’t seen enough. They want more. And I’m afraid this is only Phase One of the meltdown.”

Says a man whose party’s base spent eight years circulating viciously racist lies about the then-president, and whose party’s current president has offered to pay for lawyers to defend his supporters if they assault protesters.

“Toxic fringe behavior”? What looked like toxic fringe behavior a decade ago is now the everyday actions of the Republican establishment. If Mitch McConnell ever had a single honest instinct, he has long since ruthlessly expunged it from his soul, then spat on it for good measure.