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The Rise of the Outrageous Caucus
And the fall of hardworking lawmakers
A strong political system will stifle the growth of lazy politicians, purge bad-faith actors and attract high-profile candidates. Instead, the US political system aided and abetted by the media continues to do the exact opposite. It rewards theatrics, attracts bad-faith actors, and repels high-profile individuals from taking the political plunge.
Nothing explains this absurdity better than the rise of the Democratic quad, the Republican squad, and the ever-rising prominence of people like Steven Bannon and Stephen Miller. It’s a dangerous cocktail that will kill the democracy someday.
Money and a national spotlight have already taken precedence over legislative achievements. The media spotlight can be intoxicating. But instead of working their bottoms off to achieve that, the quad and the squad are acting their way to get it.
Let us take a closer look at the 116th congress to evaluate the performance of these artists to try and see how much value the country got for the $174,000 it paid them annually. We will use the ranking system built by the University of Virginia’s Center for Effective Lawmaking.
