Vice President JD Vance and California Gov. Gavin Newsom is taking the political rivalry to a new level with new age clapbacks.
With the rise of social media, the political interactions and disagreements have also changed. It is no more healthy discussion or clap backs through print media or interviews. It’s more about direct or indirect jabs at each other mostly through tweets or other social media posts.
American politics has become a theatre of insults, clickbait, and personal attacks, and interestingly, the American public is gobbling it all up.
However, it seems that the aggressive behaviour is more about entertainment than a meaningful debate.
After the recent gun violence against Charlie Kirk, while the conversation should have been about gun control, public safety, and appropriate political behavior, the conversation between the two parties has become a shouting match rather than a discussion about policies.
In a recent North Carolina event, Vice President JD Vance again accused Democrats of encouraging the violence against law enforcement agencies. He said,
“If your political rhetoric encourages violence … you can go straight to hell.”
JD Vance’s remarks were in line with the fiery speeches of President Donald Trump. While his supporters agreed with him, people on the other side argued that the remarks were unnecessary and caused escalation in the already hot situation.
It was also claimed that with these remarks, Vance has essentially closed the doors on any dialogue between the two parties.
Now, instead of the substance of conversation, media attention has shifted to the tone and language of conversation.
The response from the California Governor was quick and equally biting. Gavin Newsom, in a post on X, wrote:
“No thanks, JD. I will not be going ‘straight to hell’ today. Though when I watch you speak, I certainly feel like I’m already there.”
The post was funny and in line with the latest posturing of Gov. Newsom, and as expected, it went viral. It also showed the newly adopted trend of Democrats responding to any of the MAGA attacks in ‘Trump’s style’ of counterpunching.
Newsom’s comeback is a good example of performance politics. Vance’s statement was theatrical and was meant to gain eyeballs and so was Newsom’s response.
Gone are the days when politicians wanted what was best for the public and tried to change each other’s minds. It is more about who had a better clapback.
This exchange highlights the troubling reality of modern politics. It is more about creating viral moments for the voters whose attention span is not more than 30 seconds, and if you can not catch their attention and prove yourself to be more worthy of the prize in 400 characters, you might as well lose the election.
Because who is interested in understanding the point of view of the other side and who is ready to accept that, if it were possible, they made an error and there were ways to improve the confusion of the country, even if it means listening to the other side.
