Tommy Tuberville’s Gives Unhinged Rant At Trump Rally

By Nikki Slusher

The 2022 midterms have seemed to be going on for eternity. It’s because the majority of Americans are exhausted by the political cacophony the country has experienced since Donald Trump took leadership of the Republican Party. There doesn’t seem to be any sanity or civilized discourse either in our near future. Especially not with a Trump rally every weekend where wild conspiracy theories, rants fueled with hate, and other elected Republican leaders joining the clown show by spewing out fictitious facts.

So after all that, it should come as no surprise that Trump’s latest rally in Nevada this weekend made sure to include each of these aspects. This time it was Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville (GQP) who joined the Cheeto-in-Chief on stage to perpetuate such nonsense. Naturally, Tuberville was there to push voters towards Republicans in Nevada’s neck and neck Senate race which could help determine who holds the majority in 2023.

“They want to take over what you’ve got,” Tuberville told the crowd. “They” is his common term he uses to refer to Democrats, Black people, the LGBTQ+ community; basically anyone who doesn’t identify as an ultra MAGA, Evangelical white man who claims to love Jesus and owning the libs. Journalist Matthew Chapman noted that Tuberville’s rhetoric is literally just an echo of the language used by the Ku Klux Klan to provoke Southerners in the 1960s.

Tuberville’s focus was clear — get Nevadans to elect Adam Laxalt, the Republican challenger with a shot at unseating Democratic incumbent Senator Catherine Cortez Masto. He pushed the GOP’s new line that Democrats are “pro-crime,” where crime is one of the top issues for voters this cycle.

“They want to control what you have!” Tuberville told rally attendees. “They want crime because they want to take over what you’ve got! They want to have reparations because they think the people that do the crime are owed that. Bullshit! They’re not owed that.” The audience roared at his words.

What’s most concerning is how Tuberville’s speech aligned with the kind former Alabama Governor George Wallace used to give. In 1963, Gov. Wallace was sworn into office. He famously told the crowd, “Segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever!” After watching Tuberville’s speech this weekend, it was an eerie reminder that in 2022 we are still fighting the same battles almost 60 years later. Before 2015, Tuberville’s speech would’ve probably drawn criticism from Republican Party leaders. Maybe even being forced to resign. Sadly his words are a reflection of the entire party and I highly doubt anyone will speak out against his fear mongering bullshit.

What I find most ironic is Tuberville (who couldn’t even name the three branches of government) is a mediocre ex-football coach who garnered most of his success off the Black athletes who played for him. His actions this weekend were no longer dog-whistles but full on calls to the worst group of the Republican voter base. I’m aware that the First Amendment protects Tuberville’s ability to say these kinds of things, but considering he’s previously helped ignite an insurrection on our Capitol this is nothing short of alarming.

History has taught us that if we ignore it then we are doomed to repeat it. The echoes of our past are starting to haunt us — and they’re much harder to silence now than we could have ever imagined.