Kaepernick

So, Kyle Smith of the National Review (a right-wing publication, but one which occasionally tut-tuts Donald Trump) has decided that the Democrats are the party of Kaepernick:

Last week, left-wing Democrat Ayanna Pressley ousted long-term incumbent Michael Capuano from the John F. Kennedy/Tip O’Neill House seat in the Democratic primary while praising the NFL anti-flag protests, which her opponent called “wrong.” Democratic Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke says — in Texas! — that there is “nothing more American” than kneeling for the national anthem. The judicious center-left New York Times columnist David Leonhardt notes in his daily newsletter that “the anthem is a trap for Democrats.”

Of course, I doubt that anyone is actually holding 'anti-flag protests', especially not anyone running for Congress as a Democrat.  Ayanna Pressley has said she supports "both the cause and the tactics" of NFL players taking a knee to "elevate the issue of police brutality", while Beto O'Rourke gave an articulate and powerful explanation of his support for peaceful protests, one which his opponent Ted Cruz is similarly distorting.

From this laughably biased start, Smith keeps rolling to the right, claiming that "The Left and its base of activists, pundits, and (increasingly) woke capitalists simply can’t let this issue go".  But of course, if the right had allowed the country to come together and try to address police brutality, then Kaepernick would still be playing football and the protests and this article wouldn't exist.  Instead, the right and outlets like NR have followed the lead of the whiner-in-chief, using alleged 'anti-flag protests' for more than a year to distract from the fact that Trump is destroying the country.

Smith goes on to note that "Demonizing a huge population based on stereotypes derived from the actions of a few of its members is exactly the kind of anti-American impulse that liberals once stood so valiantly against."  Indeed, liberals still do stand against such demonization based on stereotypes --- such as when a right-wing publication demonizes the entire Democratic party based on some made-up allegations of 'anti-flag protests'.

After further distorting the motivation for the protests, Smith veers briefly back into rationality --- "Do the anthem protests matter when it comes to deciding which political party to vote for? It’s hard to see how they do" --- before divesting himself of all self-awareness: "Thanks to the Trumpification of national discourse --- voters appear to be growing less rational by the hour."

At least, that seems to be what Smith and the National Review are hoping.