Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance has accused his Democratic counterpart of "stolen valor," a term that typically refers to lying about a military service record.
But the actual perpetrators of "stolen valor" in this election are Vance and his party -- if not in the military context, then at least in the public service one. Republican politicians have repeatedly claimed credit for valiant actions they didn't take, pro-family legislation they didn't support and other popular policies they're trying to repeal.
For instance, as Democrats celebrated the Inflation Reduction Act's two-year anniversary last week, Republicans, who unanimously voted against the law in 2022, condemned it and pledged to claw it back. But when it comes to the projects the law subsidized, these same Republicans are big cheerleaders - both for the projects and their own (imagined) role in enabling them.
Most major IRA-funded projects are in Republican-held districts, so the list of triumphs to seize responsibility for is extensive. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (La.) has puffed up wind energy investments in his state. Rep. Nancy Mace (S.C.) has likewise trumpeted an electric vehicle plant and an electric regional transit hub. Rep. Andy Biggs (Ariz.) touted a high-tech battery manufacturing facility. And Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), who has called global warming "healthy," has since cheered a solar manufacturing project in her district.
This is hardly the only initiative Republican lawmakers have bogarted credit for despite their efforts to stop it. Last fall, House Speaker Mike Johnson (La.) cheered the expansion of Florida's Sarasota airport, which he toured with Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.). That project received at least $16 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. While some Republicans supported this law, both men voted against it.
If it were up to Republicans, most of America would have remained in the 20th century because the basis of their entire political ethos is looking backwards, not forwards. If the media really was biased towards liberals and progressive policies, there would hardly be a Republican elected anywhere if voters made their decisions on seeing tangible benefits and improvements in their own households and communities.Maybe the Democrats need a new slogan: Vote Democratic - We pass the bills that provides the necessary services and infrastructure that improve lives while - without providing a single vote - Republicans nakedly take credit for them in their own states and districts because they're so popular with the public.
