Orrin Hatch is an Idiot: Part XV

For a moment, I wanted to believe senility was setting in on the 78-year-old Orrin Hatch when he decried “radical libertarians”; surely he meant “radical liberals“, right?

I mean, while Republicans and Libertarians don’t see eye-to-eye on everything, Hatch has to be aware of the similarities. At the core of Libertarianism is freedom, individual liberty, and extremely small (or even no) government; these are exactly the principles I hear the Republicans continually praising. And while the “radical” Libertarians may talk about not having any government roads and getting rid of all government-sponsored education, Hatch has to know there’s some significant overlap in the Venn Diagram of these two parties.*

So when Hatch is quoted as saying, of people who deem him too moderate:

These people are not conservatives. They’re not Republicans.

He knows he’s stating the obvious, right? He knows many of these people he’s talking about wouldn’t use those terms as self-identifiers, right? He has to understand that while he’s vying for the Republican nomination, people who are on the edges of the GOP spectrum are allowed to campaign against him, right?

It seems Hatch feels entitled to being reelected, and doesn’t understand why not everyone is on board with that.**

He goes on to say:

They’re radical libertarians and I’m doggone offended by it. I despise these people, and I’m not the guy you come in and dump on without getting punched in the mouth.

Hatch’s rich history of violence aside, these statements don’t make any sense. If Hatch really does want to get reelected, he’s going to have to realize not everyone is a rank-and-file Republican—which should be evident by the ongoing Tea Party movement which tends to lean rather Libertarian—and he may want to consider tempering some of that rhetoric.

I mean, you can’t go around saying you’re going to go punch Libertarians in the mouth. You know what Hatch should do? He should go on record saying something nice about a few of the more prominent Libertarians. I mean, doing so would show how hypocritical he is and how willing he is to spout off whatever he needs to in order to improve his chances for reelection, but that may be what it takes to …

Wait, what? He’s already done that?

I think that Ron Paul has some good ideas in that area and I do think that the Federal Reserve should be audited. I happen to like him. I like his son, Rand, very much. He’s been a very good addition to the Senate. He’s low-key, soft-spoken, very dedicated to what he believes. And I respect people who are honest and dedicated to what they believe.

Orrin Hatch is such a piece of shit.

*At least if you’re going off what the GOP alleges to be. In that case, Republicans are more like Libertarian Lite (or, if you prefer, Libertarians are Republicans with balls).

**I mean, he seems genuinely confused. Like he’s not just politicking, but sincerely wondering “What the fuck?”