Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) has made the headlines seemingly every week since his spat with President Trump back in 2017, and since then, it has been a war of words:
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/898136462385979392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ffreewheelus.com%2Fsenator-flake-actions-speak-louder%2F
Senator Flake is a man capitalizing on the emotions President Trump brings out in our society, especially those who identify as “anti-Trump”.
His speech on January 17 didn’t shock Americans, but it escalated the questions surrounding language used by our president. Trump’s attacks on the media and free speech raised questions since his campaign, and Senator Flake used his time on the Senate floor to not only compare Trump to Stalin, but also compare his rhetoric towards the media as something similar to George Orwell’s “1984” — a fictional book written about the Party-scrutinizing human actions with ever-watchful “Big Brother”.
Watch the speech for yourself below:
A few key quotes:
- “'The enemy of the people,' was what the President of the United States called the free press in 2017."
- “As George Orwell warned, 'The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.'”
- “Together, united in the purpose to do our jobs under the Constitution, without regard to party or party loyalty, let us resolve to be allies of the truth — and not partners in its destruction.”
No matter how much Senator Flake’s comments seem to portray him as a hero to the anti-Trump group, his voting record says otherwise. 91% of the time, he voted with President Trump.
Therefore, Senator Flake may not be a Trump supporter, but he’s definitely an enabler.
Like the bartender serving drinks to an alcoholic, Senator Flake enables the president’s poor rhetoric and distasteful comments by helping him achieve policy goals and not taking any tangible steps to stop his actions or remove him from office.
We know Senator Flake talks the talk, but can he walk the walk? Let’s take a look:
The stats don’t lie folks. Senator Flake's actions speak louder than his words; he supports Trump on 91% of legislation.
Where he did stand up to Trump? Well, he didn’t do much to help his altruistic words.
When he could have favored legislation to help those in need, he voted against the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act, a device used to provide supplemental appropriations for disaster relief, reauthorize temporary bankruptcy judgeships, and revise requirements regarding the U.S. Trustee System Fund and bankruptcy.
He also diverged from Trump on government sanctions on North Korea, Russia, and Iran.
Now, with that said, Senator Flake is a Republican, meaning this data should be consumed with a grain of salt. Many will see this chart and think, “Wow, he talks about how much he hates Trump, but then he votes like this?!”
Not the case. He is simply voting along party lines, which, in the grand scheme of things, is the real problem in politics.
Let’s not let anti-Trump overpower logic. If Trump wasn’t around, Senator Flake would still be voting with a “Party Over People” mentality.