When "Owning The Libs" Is Your Highest Value

Why Lauren Boebert is America's absolute worst

The Denver Post editorial board has mostly tried to ignore U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert’s antics because they add so little to the public discourse. Since the Western Slope representative was elected in November 2020, we’ve published two editorials about her. The first urged an investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and whether her words and actions helped former President Donald Trump spark the insurrection; the other editorial defended Boebert from sexist and elitist attacks targeting her on social media for her physical appearance and her lack of a college education.

But last week, Boebert crossed a line and now we must stand up for common decency. Boebert is intentionally using her platform to peddle a gross and false narrative about Muslim Americans. We cannot fathom what evil intent drives this behavior, but after first apologizing, Boebert now has made matters worse….

Making a joke about suicide bombers and suggesting that a congresswoman is a threat to safety and security because she is a Muslim is both racist and a form of religious bigotry. Boebert did apologize to “anyone in the Muslim community I offended with my comment about Rep. Omar,” and she pledged to call Omar directly, however, Boebert reported in a strange video on Monday that that phone call went poorly, and it’s no wonder given that she prefaces the conversation by once again raising the specter of concern about Omar and threats to American security.

“Make no mistake. I will continue to fearlessly put America first. Never sympathizing with terrorists. Unfortunately, Ilhan can’t say the same thing, and our country is worse off for it,” she said.

I’ve made no secret of my antipathy for Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (R-CO), who’s demonstrated herself to be the poster child for the Dunning-Kruger Effect. Dense, crude, and unapologetically built to stay that way, Rep. Boebert is a crass dullard and an embarrassment to herself, her constituents, her country, and to Congress. Sadly, she’s not even the least intellectually agile Congresscritter, which, if you think about it for any length of time (I prefer not to), is a sad commentary on the voters who send these maroons to Washington.

Rep. Boebert’s latest public embarrassment stems from an encounter she claims to have had with Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN). Omar, a Muslim refugee and a member of the Twin Cities’ sizeable Somali diaspora, is every bit as intelligent, dignified, and classy as Boebert could only dream of being.

Perhaps that’s the problem.

Both Reps. Boebert and Omar are members of one of this nation’s two greatest deliberative bodies- yet Boebert seems to see her tenure as an opportunity to engage in gratuitous Liberal bashing. It’s not about policy or working on issues whose resolution will make America a better, more efficient, and more prosperous place.

No, it’s about bashing Libs and raking in the money that comes with it from those who revel in such things.

Still, even after her reprehensible stunt backfired spectacularly, Rep. Boebert had a chance to do the right thing and apologize publicly- and she couldn’t even do that.

Rep. Ilhan Omar deserved nothing short of a full apology. Instead, Boebert used the phone call as a publicity stunt and further insulted Omar. Boebert is clearly incapable of remorse or reflection, so as her fellow Coloradans — a beautiful place of tolerance and respect, diversity and freedom — we will help her.

We apologize to the Congresswoman and to the Muslim community for Boebert’s insensitive remarks. Such remarks, no matter how innocently intended, have no place in American discourse. Boebert should not have fabricated an encounter with the Congresswoman and she most certainly should not have suggested she or any Muslim should be suspected of terrorism based on their religion. It is incumbent on Colorado’s representatives to treat all Americans with respect and dignity regardless of differences of opinion. We know we cannot bridge the deep rifts causing Americans to distrust one another through hateful language. We are embarrassed a Colorado representative is engaged in widening this divide, and we are sorry we didn’t call her out the first time she used a derogatory reference toward you and other members of Congress who are women and minorities.

At least someone in and from Colorado had the common decency to apologize for Rep. Boebert’s unvarnished jackassery. The Post’s advisory board went on to say, “May Lauren Boebert never face this kind of anger, discrimination or bigotry.”

Of course, she won’t. Rep. Boebert is an entitled White Conservative woman who knows how to play the “own the Libs” game, in which all that matters is getting over on the political opposition. If she conducted herself with even a modicum of dignity, she’d be deservedly ignored as a back-bencher with no clout, experience, or gravitas. The only way she can garner any attention is to play the jackass and to use the embarrassment as an opportunity to fundraise.

Because, for some Americans, it’s more about “owning the Libs” than anything else. That’s every bit as pathetic as it sounds.

I don’t care that Rep. Boebert is a Republican. Or a Vagina-American. Or even a bigoted, uneducated jackass. What I care about is that our elected representatives do their jobs instead of engaging in meaningless political gamesmanship that detracts from making America a better place for Americans.

The people of Colorado’s Western Slope elected Rep. Boebert. That’s on them for not doing their due diligence and recognizing what an immature intellectual and moral lightweight they were sending to Washington. They deserve Lauren Boebert.

America deserves better.

The country is stuck with her for at least another year, so I don’t think it’s too much that we ask her to grow up, stop playing games, and do the job she was elected to do. Even if she lacks the maturity and gravitas to grasp the seriousness of her position fully, she can and should at least make an honest attempt.

Thus far, she’s proven herself incapable of even that minimal effort.

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