GOP leader’s apology is hollow

Don’t be swayed by the mea culpa from Columbiana County Republican Party Chairman Dave Johnson for the firestorm he created when he posted an offensive, heartless meme on his Facebook page.

Anyone who knows Johnson knows he believes liberals should burn in the fires of hell – figuratively, of course. The chairman has just been cautious in the way he has publicly expressed that sentiment.

But the powerful and influential GOP insider let down his guard last Sunday and, in so doing, revealed his true colors.

Johnson posted on his Facebook page an illustration that characterized the devastation of the Camp and Woosley wildfires as “God’s punishment to liberal California.”

In other words, the GOP’s punishing God has snuffed out the lives of at least 84 people and has displaced more than 1,000 Californians. The Republican Party’s God has also burned to the ground the town of Paradise.

Thus, Johnson was justifiably confident that many members of his party would applaud him for posting the illustration of a landscape consumed by fire with these captions: “Welcome to Hell”/“God’s punishment to Liberal California”/”Hell on Earth brought to you by the Liberals in California”.

While the reaction from Republicans was predictably muted, at best, Democrats far and wide responded to Johnson’s post with guns blazing.

Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairman David Betras, still smarting from this writer’s suggestion that he resign after the political debacle of the Nov. 6 general election, sent a text on Sunday featuring the illustration posted by Johnson and this message: “Can you imagine if a party leader like me said this? You would rip my head off. This is not acceptable.”

Betras is right, of course. Had he posted such an insensitive meme, he would have been condemned in this space – just as Republican Chairman Johnson is being condemned.

But, Betras also called on Johnson to resign, which to no one’s surprise the Republican leader snarkily rejected. He said the Democratic chairman should quit given his party’s poor showing locally and statewide in key races in the general election.

Johnson also knows that GOPers and the party’s well-heeled campaign contributors share his disdain for Democrats, in general, and liberals, in particular.

Therefore, given Johnson’s prominence in state and national Republican politics, and the fact that he is politically untouchable, why would he take down the offensive Facebook posting and issue an apology of sorts?

Because he is – first and foremost – a businessman.

As he told Vindicator Reporter Justin Dennis, social media denizens made a “concerted effort” to attack him and his business. He owns Summitville Tile and the Spread Eagle Tavern & Inn in Hanoverton.

The Spread Eagle is known nationally as the political mecca for Republicans. Presidents and presidential candidates, governors and gubernatorial candidates, members of Congress and other politicians make the pilgrimage to Hanoverton to meet with Johnson and other movers and shakers of the GOP.

Political careers have been made and destroyed in the Spread Eagle.

Thus, this writer’s conclusion that the Columbiana County chairman does not regret posting the meme that blames liberals for the fires in California.

Here’s the initial statement Johnson issued after the post ignited a social media firestorm:

“California has been overtaken by liberals who have taxed and over-regulated the state. There are changes that could have been made which would have helped prevent the deadly fires had there been proper management of forests, but the timber industry is not allowed. The firefighters and people’s lives should never have been put in jeopardy. They did not have to die and people did not have to lose their lives, homes, and everything they own.

“My heart goes out to firefighters who have lost their lives and their families, to the people who perished in the fire and their families, to the people who lost homes and everything they own. The point of the meme is that the people and firefighters lives could have been spared if not for the liberal policies in California. The firefighters are doing a yeoman’s job of fighting the fires, but this could have been prevented. With a lack of rainfall, forest management is even more essential to save lives and property in the state.

“The point of the meme is being exploited by Mahoning Democratic Party Chairman David Betras to cover his miserable performance in the last election and if anyone should resign Betras should resign.”

Johnson followed up that initial statement with one that was more contrite, but still sought to politicize the devastation that has consumed California.

Democratic Chairman Betras, who saw his party faithful switch to the GOP in 2016 in order to vote for Donald Trump for president, went for the jugular in his statement about Johnson’s post:

“I’ve been asking myself why anyone would politicize or make light of this very human tragedy.

“The answer to that question is obvious: Johnson’s post is symptomatic of the depravity that has engulfed the Republican Party in the age of Trump. An age in which truth has no value and disgusting comments about women, the disabled, minorities, and other groups and individuals too numerous to mention have polluted and perverted politics and public discourse.

“I would say that Johnson should be ashamed of himself, but as he and the president he worships have proven time and again, they have no shame.”

It is instructive that President Trump’s initial reaction to the wildfires in California was to point the finger of blame at the Democratic state government.

Here’s what he tweeted on Nov. 10:

“ … there is no reason for these massive, deadly and costly fires in California. Billions of dollars are given each year, with so many lives lost, all because of gross mismanagement of the forests. Remedy now, or no more Fed payments!”

Trump was harshly criticized for that insensitive and ill-timed comment. He subsequently decided to travel to California.

After visiting various locations, including the destroyed community of Paradise, the president had this to say:

“I think people have to see this really to understand it. … We’ve never seen anything like this in California. It’s total devastation.”

The idea that liberal policies in California are responsible for the wildfires is simplistic and unsupported by the evidence on the ground.

Wildfires are a complicated issue that must be dealt with objectively and apolitically.

And no, God – not even the one worshipped by Republicans – has not visited fire and damnation upon California just because Democrats are in power.