So what exactly is the Republican endgame on COVID?

[Dr. Jack]

It appears COVID is surging in the United States again but unsurprisingly pretty much just among those who aren't vaccinated. Now of course I'm aware that not 100% of those who aren't vaccinated are Republicans and some people might not be able to get vaccinated even if they would want to. However, it's my understanding that covid deaths are disproportionately in Republican areas of the country.

We all know the reason Republicans are far less likely to get vaccinated and far more likely to be the victims of this disease. Their favorite propaganda networks are telling them to not get vaccinated and that covid is not a big deal. My question is, what exactly is the Republican endgame here? The GOP has been struggling with a diminishing voter base for years now. They have little appeal, generally speaking, among anyone under 40 years old and that has been a real problem for them. They tried allying with the white supremacists but that barely worked in 2016 and led to significant electoral defeats in 2018 and 2020. Now part of their strategy, whether intentional or not, to let their voters die of an easily preventable disease. Where is this all leading? What's their goal?

Sure there's voter suppression attempts but even the harshest voter suppression laws, from what I've read, can only affect things a bit at the margins. And there's no guarantee it won't backfire on the Republicans. There are also attempts to rile up the base with the "stop the steal!" nonsense but we have also seen that backfire on the Republicans, like in the Georgia runoffs, where their voters think "the election will be stolen so what's the point in voting".

As someone who isn't a paranoid right wing lunitic, I can't wrap my head around the Republican strategy right now. They are letting their already dangerously small base die of covid (and that's not the only questionable decision they are making). Even from a cold, highly cynical, practical prospective, their stance on covid seems like it is going to damage their party far more than it could ever conceivably damage Biden and the Democrats.

What is their endgame?

[Sanity Claws]

1. They want Biden to appear to be a failure

They don't want the pandemic to end because it would show what a disaster 45 was.
If they make Biden a failure, then they have a chance of winning the Presidency, the Senate and the House.

[femmedem]

2. I think they started down this path without thinking of an endgame.

I think they were always thinking of the immediate future: if they admitted how bad it was, businesses would shut down and corporate profits would suffer. They also like to stoke distrust of science and experts, because if they didn't, we'd be united in an all-out war against climate change, which again would hurt short-term corporate profits.

Now their endgame is probably to let the dead fall where they may, and carry on afterwards with herd immunity. And for the Republican politicians and media personalities who understand that vaccines are effective and safe, they are probably thinking that it's too late to backtrack without losing their base.

[Dr. Jack]

5. I think I sometimes forget this isn't the Republican Party of 2002 or 2004

15-20 years ago I remember the GOP was vicious and their strategies were often quite brilliant. They are still vicious but maybe I should stop assuming they have some super secret effective plan to out maneuver the Democrats. They could just be as inept and self sabotaging as they appear to be. Maybe the smart people disappeared from the party years ago and only the paranoid nutjobs with no clue what they are doing are left to run the show?

[Strelnikov_]

18. Agree

Remember a Paul Krugman interview from early in the Jr. admin. Krugman was explaining to the interviewer how short-sighted the GOP economic policies were. After a bit, the interviewer asked Krugman what is their endgame. His answer was that they don't think that far ahead.

[Terry_M]

3. No end game

Winning points on the short term is all they're doing. They convinced people to skip the vaccine and now they are sucking them in by being the ones that protect their rights to not be vaccinated against the evil democrats who want to take your guns away so they can storm into your house, tie you up and vaccinate you.

First make you scared then be your only protector.

They keep you voting for them. That is all that counts - the next election, and then after that one's done, the next one and so on. All else is irrelevant.

Our problem unfortunately is that we're looking further out at broader problems at the expense of the 'right now' votes. They are post issue, we still focus on issues.

[kickitup]

6. You are absolutely right.

[uponit7771]

15. yep

[NickB79]

4. They're stuck with their 2020 strategy and are too stubborn to change

In 2020 they solidified around a Covid strategy of denial.

Deny Covid was real.

Deny Covid was worse than the flu.

Deny medical and scientific experts who's recommendations would hurt the economy with social distancing or inconvenience people with masks.

Deny the death toll was bad.

And above anything, DO NOT acknowledge Covid was a danger for fear of making Trump look bad in the election.

But, their entire strategy was predicated on Trump winning a second term. That would have allowed them to keep peddling their BS without challenge. Now? They can't change in 2021, or they'll have to admit they were full of shit in 2020.

So, they're going to cling to their beliefs, even if it kills them

[captain queeg]

7. Like others have stated, they didn't think it through and now they are just blundering along

Nothing new, they’ve not had any plan beyond trying to undercut anything the Dems do. They are an embarrassment. All they do is geared for staying in power and now they find themselves even more unpopular than ever. Like Lindsey said, following trump will destroy their party and they’ll deserve it.

[NotASurfer]

8. Looks like a "better dead than permanent minority party" stray

Which overlaps nicely with the "from my cold, dead hands!" strategy

Dunno the real reason, I've seen animal studies that concluded some males engage in risky behavior to improve their odds of mating with females who for some reason prefer males who do stupid things and manage to not die as a result. Maybe it's end-stage incel behavior, nothing else works and a primitive part of the brain says that not getting a vaccine somehow equates to being unbearably attractive to women,

[apcalc]

9. My view is that they refuse to do ANYTHING

that will help Biden Succeed. Even not get vaccinated.

[CanonRay]

10. Power and Money

That's their endgame, always has been, always will be. They really don't care about Covid or anything else except as a means to power and money.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

11. From the Hoarse Whisperer

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[FalloutShelter]

12. Push us back into lockdown,

Crash the economy, blame Biden, take back power.

[Fiendish Thingy]

13. To keep their base outraged against the govt. to allow the dismantling of democracy. Nt

[lark]

14. They want to kill off the working class/poor & blame Biden.

That is 100% their plan. Their reasons are for personal profit - as always. They don't have to get votes, they've got the laws to state that Dems can't ever win in several states and laws like this are pending in a lot more. They would happily kill millions, if they were sure it would get them the power they want to destroy our country and steal every bit of the power and money from us.

[uponit7771]

16. I truly think they thought they'd kill as many non whites as possible in flip districts and ...

... now they can't change their strateejury

[peggysue2]

17. Their end game?

Sow confusion and disinformation, refuse to allow President Biden any success and ultimately install their rule of the minority, a white nationalist, theocratic autocracy.

That's the goal. That's why we fight.

As for allowing Americans to die, even their own supporters?

They. Don't. Care.

It's a vivid, disgusting example of how far gone the Republican Party truly is. Their devotion to Trump, the wanna-be Orange King, is the only thing that matters as long as they resume power.

And if they do? All bets are off. As is any reasonable future for the United States and her people.

[Politicub]

19. Anti-vaxx politicians would kill their mothers for a vote. The endgame is

getting elected. To them, the means (spreading lethal misinformation) justify the ends (winning office). It’s as simple as that.

The anti-vaxx suckers believe the shit they’re spreading. My guess is that the politicians courting them have been vaccinated.

[pwb]

20. I won't help them with my thoughts on how they can be better.

I would say to just proceed.