Lamb Chop

Via Breath on Paper.

Steve and Drifty and Mr. Pierce have all weighed in on yesterday's Brooks, on the victory of Democratic candidate Conor Lamb in Tuesday's special congressional election in western Pennsylvania to replace the Republican anti-abortion fanatic who had to resign after it was revealed that he'd asked a girlfriend to get an abortion after getting her pregnant in the course of an adulterous affair, in which Brooks naturally explains Lamb's victory by saying that Lamb was just like Brooks, unlabeled and putting country ahead of party, with a boldly eclectic or Chinese-menu list of policy ideas left and right, where left is represented by universal healthcare, rejection of Trump's tax robbery, and passionate union support, and right by taking the same position on abortion as Mario Cuomo and Edward M. Kennedy did, the same position on assault weapons as Bernie Sanders and Kirsten Gillibrand when they were in the House, and announcing that he wouldn't vote for Nancy Pelosi, or Paul Ryan, for Speaker if he has the opportunity when the new Congress convenes in 2019, which he may not, since he'll have to run again in a redrawn district in November first (the DCCC doesn't seem to have gotten too upset over the threat, giving his campaign a million dollars).

No, it's a little more complicated than that, but not much. The man's a Democrat, with some western-Pennsylvania views I don't much like, including supporting the steel tariff (like no more than half of Republicans and a fairly large number of other Democrats) and declining to speak ill of Trump (a rule Brooks ought to like because it shows respect for those phantom WWC voters, but doesn't follow himself). I'll probably get mad at him at some point.

Brooks disagrees with practically everything he says but doesn't care because he has "character" (he's kind of crushing, to tell the truth):

Moral character is always the same essential things. Putting a higher love, like nation, over a lower love, like party. Going against yourself — feeling that urge to lash out with the low angry insult, and instead rising upward with the loving and understanding response.

Conor Lamb is wrong on a bunch of stuff, but he is a breath of fresh air for this country. This year, restoring character and shared moral norms matters most. Policy is secondary.

In other words, it's an opportunity for Brooks to show what gobs of moral character he has himself, praising the enemy (once it's too late to stop him from winning—Brooks never mentioned the race while it was going on). Too bad he could never bring himself to praise Obama in this way.

The eminences who have already fisked this haven't left much for me to talk about, but I will mention the startling Easter or Passover headline,

Worthy Is the Lamb

apparently drawn from Revelation 5:12

Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing

which sounds, excuse me, like a little bit of overkill in the Christ-comparisons category, applied to the new Congresssman. (I prefer the gags that contrasted Lamb with his bad old boy opponent Rick Saccone, in terms of "the lyin' and the Lamb".) Or, worse, a hymn from the Australian prosperity-gospel cult church Hillsong, which Brooks has mentioned admiringly before, interesting for its lack of rhyme but kind of gross:

Thank you for this love Lord
Thank you for the nail pierced hands
Wash me in Your cleansing flow
Now all I know Your forgiveness and embrace
Worthy is the Lamb
Seated on the throne
Crown You now with many crowns
You reign victorious

Is Brooks actually going there of a Sunday? Ew. Or maybe this, which I would certainly be more comfortable with: