West, noted skeptic of masks and vaccines even though he was hospitalized recently for COVID-19, was confronted at the DFW airport by a man wearing a mask who reportedly said to him, “Put your mask on, idiot.” A brief argument ensued, and the police report said “they could see both gentlemen’s arms moving towards each other.” Both men agree that West grabbed the mask from the complaintant’s face. The man said West struck his face as he removed the mask, although West said he merely “flicked” it off.
A spokeswoman for the Grapevine Municipal Court said a local prosecutor will decide soon whether to file assault charges against West.
The larger point is that once upon a time, political candidates and office-holders conducted themselves with a certain amount of dignity in public and tried to avoid incidents like this. Now, some characters relish these confrontations in a pathetic attempt to prove how tough or ideologically pure they are.
In a particularly disturbing incident recently, far-right Congressman Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., tweeted a video that included altered animation showing him killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., with a sword.
Behavior like this isn’t normal, and voters shouldn’t accept it from either party. Our politics are getting angrier, in large part because too many politicians are saying and doing offensive things that would have been unthinkable just a few short years ago.
It won’t stop until voters start voting for opposing candidates in the next election. Political leaders should strive to be role models for all Americans and especially our youth. If some partisan extremists don’t realize this basic point, they need to be replaced with responsible grownups who do.