top of page

Revisiting Cancel Culture: The House of Representatives

Writer's picture: Brian GoldfederBrian Goldfeder

Let me make one thing clear: I am not trying to get political in this post. I am a registered independent who is neither Democrat nor Republican, and I support whoever acts in the best interest of the people and the country.


But right now, we have a brewing toxic work environment on the north side of the U.S. Capitol building, where people are fighting with each other rather than working toward the common goal of supporting and helping the American people.


Case in point: Marjorie Taylor Greene.


Here is someone elected to Congress last November from the state of Georgia. In recent days, videos and social media posts in which Taylor Greene spreads lies and conspiracy theories about the "stolen" presidential election and the Parkland shooting, seemingly supporting the execution of Congressional leaders, comparing congressmen to people with Down's syndrome, and more, and as a result, there are calls for her to resign and/or be expelled from Congress. What is her response? She claims she is being "cancelled".


OK, here is the big difference between Marjorie Taylor Greene and Jared Porter (the ousted GM of the New York Mets that I wrote about last week). Jared Porter committed disgusting acts over four years ago, he admitted it, he felt remorseful, and has not conducted himself in that manner since then (at least that we are aware of), but still lost his job. Marjorie Taylor Greene has not shown remorse for her actions, or even admitted them, instead trying to pass the blame onto her social media team. She continues to act in a toxic manner, even today. And yet she is allowed to keep her job as a congresswoman (and be assigned vital committee roles to boot). That is a big problem.


Then there's Matt Gaetz, the Florida congressman who flew to Wyoming to hold a rally for voters to oust Liz Cheney, Wyoming's lone representative, for her voting in favor of impeaching Donald Trump over his actions leading up to the January 6 Capitol riot. He does this, instead of going to his home district to fight for his own constituents, and only weeks into a new Congress. There is one thing I agree on: if the majority of people in Wyoming want something, it is Cheney's job to vote on their behalf. But at the same time, she must also act in the best interest of her state. This put Cheney between a rock and a hard place. In the end, most Americans want Trump to be barred from holding office (which is what this trial is really about, constitutional disputes notwithstanding), and Cheney voted her conscience.


Gaetz has also cried "cancel culture" as a result of his actions, which resulted in his losing a book deal (he later got another publisher with conservative ties). But yet he continues to act in a toxic manner, fighting against a colleague (and, ironically, trying to "cancel" her for voting her conscience) instead of for his constituents.


So in short, when it comes to cancel culture, one must consider the current behavior of the individual. If they are toxic, they must be dealt with. If they were in the past and reformed themselves, that's a different story.


I know this has little to do with a corporate work environment, but Congress is still a work environment, and the principles still apply. Congress is a team, and like any team, there will be disagreements and conflict, but there must ultimately be a way to come together and meet the common goal. These two representatives are not interested in working with others right now and need to be dealt with. Plain and simple.


Be healthy!

8 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page