Jared Schmeck: “Yeah, I hope you guys have a wonderful Christmas as well. Merry Christmas, and let’s go, Brandon.”
Joe Biden: “Let’s go, Brandon, I agree.”
Jared Schmeck is from Southern Oregon. His name was chosen to share Christmas Eve greetings with Joe and Jill Biden. He put a video of the chat on YouTube. It was a warm, friendly call, full of smiles and Christmas banter. Biden asked about the Schmeck family kids. Griffin wanted Santa to bring a piano, Hunter wanted Nintendo, Piper wanted Barbie, and two year old Penelope wasn't saying. Jared handed the phone to Griffin and Hunter, so they got to talk with the president--a nice keepsake for them.
The video gives an unmistakable impression of friendly happy-talk between strangers. Dogs do something similar by sniffing each other. Humans do it with words, but the words don't matter. It is signaling good will and friendly intention.
The video has been seen 311,000 times as of Monday morning. Jared is listed as the office administrator at an electrical contracting business. Winema Electric made repeated $500 and $1,000 contributions to Trump and the RNC in the summer and fall leading up to the 2020 election. The company website and Facebook pages were taken down, but third party sites quote the company philosophy:
Jared was contacted by the media, and he says his parting words were just a friendly joke made as a "free-thinking American and a follower of Jesus Christ." He told the Portland newspaper, "I understand there is a vulgar meaning to 'Let's go Brandon,'" but Biden "seems like he's a cordial guy. There's no animosity or anything like that. It was merely an innocent jest to also express my God-given right to express my frustrations in a joking manner."
The sign-off by Schmeck did not appear to be a political statement. Afterwards, when pressed to explain himself by a reporter, Schmeck put a rational justification for it, but I suspect it was him scrambling to make sense of what he had blurted. Biden had been pleasantly engaged with his young children, and he ended with coded "Fuck Joe Biden."
Conservative media are loving this. They suggest that Joe Biden is unaware that "Let's go, Brandon," is code for "Fuck Joe Biden." Of course, Biden knows what the phrase means. Biden was staying on task on Christmas Eve, doing happy-talk.
The blurted comment exposes the toxic effect of the marriage of Christian evangelism and the GOP under Trump. Trump normalized incivility and transgressive rule-breaking. It changed unconscious, automatic behavior of people in the religious/political tribe. "Let's go, Brandon" was a companion phrase to "Merry Christmas," not a reversal of it.
The coarsening of behavior is troubling to some Christian writers and ministers who worry Christ is getting the short end of this marriage. Christians get the federal judges they think they want, but they are substituting Christian virtues with warrior virtues. Empathy is for losers. The Golden Rule is for the meek, and the meek are wimps. It shows up as commonplace coded insults. Donald Trump, Jr. urged the faithful understand and embrace the new Church. We need to understand the limitations of Christianity, he told the cheering crowd at Turning Point USA. He said Christian Republicans are hobbled by too much civility. "We’ve been playing tee-ball for half a century, while they’re playing hardball and cheating, right?”
I don't think Jared Schmeck meant to be uncivil. He is in a faith community and political mind-set where saying "Fuck Joe Biden" in code is a pleasantry. Or, maybe not. Look at the last half second of the video again. Was that a smirk? Did he just get away with a naughty prank?
THE WINEMA WAY Grounded in Christian Values, Winema Electric is lighting the future of the electrical industry, by providing a higher standard of service that exceeds expectations.
OUR CORE VALUES Our way is to create an environment that changes the way work is done; a place where employees become family; where we empower one another to succeed in every aspect of life; building enthusiasm in our company so everyone goes home safe with love and pride for their work; creating lifelong relationships with those we serve, our team, our customers, and our community; inspiring one another to live every day with the basic Christian value of always doing the right thing."
Jared was contacted by the media, and he says his parting words were just a friendly joke made as a "free-thinking American and a follower of Jesus Christ." He told the Portland newspaper, "I understand there is a vulgar meaning to 'Let's go Brandon,'" but Biden "seems like he's a cordial guy. There's no animosity or anything like that. It was merely an innocent jest to also express my God-given right to express my frustrations in a joking manner."
The sign-off by Schmeck did not appear to be a political statement. Afterwards, when pressed to explain himself by a reporter, Schmeck put a rational justification for it, but I suspect it was him scrambling to make sense of what he had blurted. Biden had been pleasantly engaged with his young children, and he ended with coded "Fuck Joe Biden."
Conservative media are loving this. They suggest that Joe Biden is unaware that "Let's go, Brandon," is code for "Fuck Joe Biden." Of course, Biden knows what the phrase means. Biden was staying on task on Christmas Eve, doing happy-talk.
The blurted comment exposes the toxic effect of the marriage of Christian evangelism and the GOP under Trump. Trump normalized incivility and transgressive rule-breaking. It changed unconscious, automatic behavior of people in the religious/political tribe. "Let's go, Brandon" was a companion phrase to "Merry Christmas," not a reversal of it.
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| Churchleaders.com |
The coarsening of behavior is troubling to some Christian writers and ministers who worry Christ is getting the short end of this marriage. Christians get the federal judges they think they want, but they are substituting Christian virtues with warrior virtues. Empathy is for losers. The Golden Rule is for the meek, and the meek are wimps. It shows up as commonplace coded insults. Donald Trump, Jr. urged the faithful understand and embrace the new Church. We need to understand the limitations of Christianity, he told the cheering crowd at Turning Point USA. He said Christian Republicans are hobbled by too much civility. "We’ve been playing tee-ball for half a century, while they’re playing hardball and cheating, right?”
I don't think Jared Schmeck meant to be uncivil. He is in a faith community and political mind-set where saying "Fuck Joe Biden" in code is a pleasantry. Or, maybe not. Look at the last half second of the video again. Was that a smirk? Did he just get away with a naughty prank?
[Note: to subscribe by email go to: https://petersage.substack.com. The blog is free and always will be.]
9 comments:
Yes, take it as a compliment. It disarms it. Some can view it as Biden being clueless, but I think for him to take it literally as support makes him look stronger. The put down is no longer a put down, it’s a put up.
In my opinion, based on what I’ve seen and read, Schmuck and his kids had time to consider what they’d say, and Schmuck knew exactly what he was doing. His “Let’s Go Brandon” was a vulgarian’s stunt, though he expected high-fives instead of this ongoing furor. Schmuck deserves it because he besmeared a holiday tradition focusing on kids. The President should be off-limits on such occasions.
While I concede this was yet another qualitative slip down the slope, there is no moral high ground for Democrats here. The civility worm turned for everyone in the sideshow 1968 election, and Democrats themselves reached new nadirs of incivility at the expense of the “senile” Reagan, Dubya as a mass-murdering chimp, then media stars like Robert DeNiro saying “Eff” You Trump at awards ceremonies.
Today, however, belongs to the Rogue Valley’s own Christian instant celebrity.
This person directly insulted the President of the United States, and by inference everything the office stands for, in front of his children, with a stupid MAGA inspired meme. I don't believe we had an incident like this in the four years of the last one; despite all the outrages emanating from the White House a vestige of respect for the office was still observed.
Too woke? "Free speech"? Thick skin?
Have we really sunk so low that this is now acceptable? Yes, it's juvenile, ignorant and of no consequence, but c'mon, really? After those who share these attitudes attacked the Capital and people were killed? When rhetoric precedes violence?
Maybe this person will see he crossed a line and apologize. After all:
"Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you." - Acts 8:22
The “marriage of Christian evangelism and the GOP” started under Reagan.
Ironically, the Bidens, in their latest public relations foray, appear to be trying to mimic the casual ”morning in America” warmth of the Reagans.
The recent poses on the sofas has struck me as inordinately inane, and that preceded this, about which I’d say the same.
Just my observations. I was not a Reagan supporter. I also doubt these efforts by Team Biden are going to raise his approval ratings. (Also, Jill sounded like an idiot.)
I'm never doing any business with this company.
If he were my employee and disrespected any president, I'd fire him.
If he were my spouse I'd leave him. What a poor example of a father.
BTW, the US Constitution does not confer rights from any diety, nor protect one from society.
At some point comments like the Brandon comment drop from the lips of a low tribal member's lips land far from the mark intended. An indication that Trump is losing sway and transgressions of his tribe member customs and mores are no longer excusable. Trump is still covered though by the main stream media because he's good copy and can be relied upon to feed their 24/7 news monster.
So they accidentally connected Biden to a dork - who cares? You'd think it was a slow news day or something. Those who are clamoring to F--K JOE BIDEN are just going to have to go f--k themselves, because he's happily married.
I wouldn't expect any kind of apology. I saw a film clip of Schmuck on where else, Steve Bannons show today, of Schmeck/Schmuck proclaiming his fealty to Drumpf, and I quote, stating unequivocally "Joe Biden is not the legal President".
Brandon had no responsibility nor part in creating this controversial phrase. Yes, the misinterpretation by the NBC reporter is the origin.
Sure, the crowd is clearly wrong with both the vulgar chant or the "clean for broadcast" phrase. To declare that only Republicans are unhappy with the Biden administration is a stretch.
Anyone, R, D, or others, is wrong when criticizing the administration in vulgar terms.
Meanwhile, poor Brandon from a news report. Those canceling him are wrong, too:
NBC should take some responsibility.
Brandon Brown who inadvertently sparked 'Let's Go Brandon!' anti-Biden chant says he has been CANCELLED: Phrase has made it ‘extremely difficult’ for him to get sponsorship — NASCAR driver Brandon Brown, who unintentionally sparked 'Let's Go Brandon!', spoke out about the difficulties of getting corporate sponsorship.
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