Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan decided that the middle of a crisis on the southern border, where kids are being forcibly separated from their parents by U.S. border agents, was the perfect time to issue a Father’s Day video on Twitter.
In the clip, Ryan doesn’t say a single thing about the literally thousands of families that are being decimated as we speak. Not a word about the fathers there who will have little to celebrate Sunday, courtesy of President Trump and the weak Republicans in Congress. Sadly, this is par for the course for the GOP, both inside and outside the White House.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders both quoted the Bible to defend this heinous practice, and President Trump for his part is inexplicably blaming Democrats for both the policy of separating kids itself, and for his unwillingness to exercise his executive branch powers and not follow this policy. All of that is the Democrats’ fault, you see.
Republicans in Congress have allowed this tragedy to unfold with little more than lip service. Some are calling for legislation that would end this policy, but only as part of a larger border bill that dumps millions into Trump’s long-sought wall and institutes other draconian measures. With the president threatening to veto the GOP bills currently under discussion, the few Republicans in congress talking a good game are afraid of a face-off with the White House so close to the mid-term elections.
Ryan had managed to mostly avoid direct criticism for this debacle, until now. His tone-deaf tweet has unleashed a massive backlash on Twitter. Here’s just a sampling of what he’s facing:
Paul Ryan is wishing a happy Father's Day to all the dads out there, except those who may be seeking asylum in this country and have had their young children ripped from their arms. Those dads get Paul Ryan's cowardly silence.https://t.co/LOzKu7Bqt7
— Brian Fallon (@brianefallon) June 16, 2018
Tell it to the dads who’ve had their kids taken from them by the president to gain leverage in congressional negotiation.
Visit one such dad, look him in the eye; and tell him how much your life changes and what a priority Liza, Charlie, and Sam are. https://t.co/WhfPW3Nui4
— Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) June 16, 2018
History will remember your inaction. I will happily teach it.
— NerdyGirlsRock (@LiberalsTeach) June 16, 2018
Dear @SpeakerRyan: You really are a spineless, tone-deaf jackass. How dare you boast about your "fatherhood," while supporting a policy and an administration that is tearing families apart. Those children will suffer permanent damage. You should be working to change this policy. https://t.co/8xzs9KycAt
— (((Christine Fair))) (@CChristineFair) June 16, 2018
Tell that tot he dads whose children have been ripped out of their arms and incarcerated. Fuck you and your shitty Vichy @GoP that will go down in history for enabling the demise of American democracy. https://t.co/8xzs9KycAt
— (((Christine Fair))) (@CChristineFair) June 16, 2018
You cynical, sanctimonious, hypocritical prick. You tweet this on a day when your Congress is supporting a man willing to hold thousands of children hostage so he can build a f*cking Wall you know is stupid?! Oh… right. He’s the Commander-of-Cheese. And you’re the cheese head. https://t.co/u5pGJh3b7w
— Ken Olin (@kenolin1) June 16, 2018
Seriously, fuck you. Reunite the families at the border and we can talk about father's day. https://t.co/bbG0gVqfzq
— John Legend (@johnlegend) June 16, 2018
Paul Ryan detailing the joys of fatherhood while doing fuckall to challenge Trump’s policy of literally ripping innocent kids away from their dads is so excruciatingly tone-deaf that I actually can’t think of a better metaphor for the GOP. https://t.co/HB1y3EChHo
— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) June 16, 2018
innocent kids are being fucking imprisoned, Paul. Pull your head out of your fucking ass.
— Atticus Goldfinch (@AtticusGF) June 16, 2018
https://twitter.com/MarieTitus9/status/1008038834901278720
We have concentration camps full of children ripped from their families…I wonder how their Fathers Day is going to be. #Complict
— CrankyMaddog (@CrankyMaddog) June 16, 2018
You are leaving your children and grandchildren a sad legacy. Your name will be associated with a dark period in this country. You served your masters very well and let down the people. Shameful.
— Renee (@rjw411) June 16, 2018
YOU
ARE
A
SPINELESS
COWARD—
That's all you have ever been. Liza, Charlie, and Sam will know it for the rest of their lives.
— Operation Veracity™ (@OPSVeracity) June 16, 2018
Yeah, kids *are* important to their fathers, wonder how you could act on that idea these days.
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) June 16, 2018
The bond between parents and kids is amazing, isn't it? Good people who had it in their power to preserve this bond would surely do so, don't you think?
— Elizabeth Picciuto (@epicciuto) June 16, 2018
While you unerringly and unquestioningly support tearing families apart for sadistic pleasure. This tweet is depraved.
— Sam Sykes (@SamSykesSwears) June 16, 2018