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This quote from Hawley is so so revealing, and shows something profound about how Trump-era Republicans understand themselves.
"The Republican Party — if it belongs to anybody — it belongs to the voters, the people who sent us here,” he said. “That's who I'm accountable to.”"
"The Republican Party — if it belongs to anybody — it belongs to the voters, the people who sent us here,” he said. “That's who I'm accountable to.”"
He's speaking here not about being a US Senator who is accountable to the voters - all of them - of his state of Missouri. No he's saying the Party is what matters here, and the Party is run by its voters and so that is who he is accountable to.
Trump was very clear about this, that he represented the people that voted for him and only them. Ron Johnson has made similar noises, but Hawley is making it explicit here that he sees himself fundamentally as a party functionary, not a member of the representative government.
That is why Hawley, along with Cruz and Rick Scott could work to disenfranchise the majority of American voters, because they view themselves as only representing Republicans and obviously overturning a democratic election would be fine with most Republicans.
Their fidelity is not to the Constitution, or to the voters of their state but to *Republican voters and those alone*.
