As we close in on the end of another month of executive, legislative, and judicial turmoil, we find the latest opportunity to recognize excellence* in ass clownery. As always, the bench is deep and the challenge of plumbing its depths daunting, but if nobody else is willing to step up to the task, I'll do it once again.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, we present
The Left-Cheek Ass Clown Award for July, 2025
to
The Republican Regrets Coalition:
Senators Bill Cassidy (R, LA),
Lisa Murkowski (R, AK),
Josh Hawley (R, MO), and
Thom Tillis (R, NC)
Der Furor's absolute domination of Republican senators and representatives is well-documented, as is his ability to force them to make decisions and support positions that are antithetical to the interests of their constituents. This has seldom been better illustrated than by their votes in favor of confirming unqualified administration appointees and of passing the "Big Beautiful Bill" which is packed with measures detrimental to many segments of the population ... but which will manifest themselves in voters' lives and pocketbooks well after those who supported them are out of office. The four senators we dishonor with today's award represent some of the most blatant examples of voting as their leader demands, then publicly regretting their actions:
Senator Cassidy, himself a doctor (a gastroenterologist), agreed to support the appointment of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr (not a physician or scientist of any kind), to be Secretary of Health and Human Services only after Mr Kennedy promised not to upend the nation’s system for evaluating vaccines. Kennedy went on to fire all 17 members of the vaccine advisory panel, replacing them with eight new members, some of whom have histories of vaccine skepticism. Cassidy then complained that “many” of the new members Kennedy appointed to the panel “do not have significant experience studying microbiology, epidemiology or immunology.” Oops.
Senator Murkowski insisted that she was responsible for taking care of residents of Alaska, and said "I know that in many parts of the country, there are Americans that are not going to be advantaged by this bill. I don't like that." Oops.
Senator Hawley (a two-time previous winner**), just two weeks after he did as he was told and voted for Der Furor's BBB, introduced legislation that would counter its cuts to Medicaid and repair the damage he’d just endorsed. “Now is the time to prevent any future cuts to Medicaid from going into effect,” he said in a statement. Oops.
Senator Tillis decided not to run for reelection after regretting his own votes in favor of, among other things, Pete Hegseth to be Secretary of Defense, too late realizing that the man was "out of his depth" and guilty of "making amateurish decisions" in the position. Oops.
It has become abundantly clear over the years that people who hitch their wagons to Der Furor tend to end up with their reputations in tatters, being demeaned, insulted, and cast aside when they are no longer useful or when they wake up to the devil's bargain they've made. Today's winners exemplify the sidelining of honor and moral character demanded by the MAGA world.
Have a good day, and make sure your elected officials at all levels are doing their jobs, not blindly kissing the backside of a man unworthy of their willing degradation.
More thoughts coming.
Bilbo
* If I may be forgiven for using the word in this context.
** Special Award, January 2021 (shared with Senator Ted Cruz); and Left-Cheek Award for March, 2022 (shared with the other GOP members of the Senate Judiciary Committee). Senator Hawley thus receives his second Poison Ivy Cluster.