Earlier this week, Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) expressed his frustration with “some female senators from the Northeast” who’ve refused to vote to take health care benefits from millions of Americans. “If it was a guy from south Texas, I might ask him to step outside and settle this Aaron Burr-style,” Farenthold added.
The Texas Republican later apologized, but we nevertheless saw Rep, Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) on MSNBC yesterday, expressing a related sentiment. The Georgia congressman reflected on Donald Trump’s criticism of Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), over her skepticism of the party’s regressive health care plan. It led Carter to say this on the air:
“I think it’s perfectly fair. Let me tell you, somebody needs to go over there to that Senate and snatch a knot in their ass.”
First, there’s a problem when House Republican men use violent rhetoric in reference to Senate Republican women.
Second, before yesterday afternoon, I’d literally never heard the phrase “snatch a knot in their ass,” and I have absolutely no idea what it means.
I looked up “snatch a knot” in the Urban Dictionary, which has an entry that says, “To hit someone, usually used in a threat of punishment or retribution. A knot is generally snatched in one’s ass, though variants include the neck and the head.” Call me old fashioned, but instead of threatening moderate senators, Republican officials might want to try negotiating with them, perhaps trying to legislate in a constructive way.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past." Recommended
