Republicans’ dubious political calculus on Democrats and the suburbs

Washington Post logo

Much of suburbia is rapidly diversifying already.

One theme of the Republican National Convention, straight out of the president’s Twitter feed, is that the suburbs will be destroyed if Democrats win. Sometimes this argument is more subtle. It’s never explicitly said that mostly white enclaves risk being overrun with minorities. But sometimes — like when it came from the gun-wielding couple in St. Louis who spoke at Monday’s convention and the president himself — that argument is in-your-face.

“They’re not satisfied with spreading the chaos and violence into our communities. They want to abolish the suburbs altogether by ending single family home zoning,” said Mark McCloskey, who waved a gun at Black Lives Matter protesters outside his St. Louis mansion this summer. “ … These are the policies that are coming to a neighborhood near you. So make no mistake, no matter where you live, your family will not be safe.”

Here’s Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) in his speech Monday at the convention: “They’ll disarm you, empty the prisons, lock you in your home and invite MS-13 to live next door.” Continue reading.