# NEW Stupid Republican Idea of the Day (Part 4) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 22, 2025, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678 "2025-02-22T21:08:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 204
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2026, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4061 "2026-04-15T21:05:40Z")
The “I’ve been a Catholic for over six years” part may be the justification he uses. But of course the _real_ reason Vance feels qualified to lecture the Pope, is that **Vance’s boss has nukes, and the Pope has none**. The Golden Rule as put into practice by the right is, of course, “_he who has the gold, makes the rules_.” But the **root** rule is the Nuclear Rule: He who controls nukes, gets to decide what everyone else is allowed to say (and think). Vance, Hegseth, Miller: they all adhere to the particular religion of _MIGHT MAKES RIGHT_. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2026, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4062 "2026-04-15T22:18:21Z")
Democrats really need to get out the message that Republicans are anti-Christian. There is ample evidence of it, and if that message sticks it would be devastating to them. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2026, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4063 "2026-04-15T23:00:12Z")
But I fear, though, the MAGA evangelicals will never be reached. Too far gone. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2026, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4064 "2026-04-15T23:26:01Z")
> [@Guest-starring\_Id](#): > > But I fear, though, the MAGA evangelicals will never be reached. I think the MAGA evangelicals have basically repudiated Christianity at this point. They have embraced a new religion of Trumpism. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2026, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4065 "2026-04-15T23:37:56Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Democrats really need to get out the message that Republicans are anti-Christian. There is ample evidence of it, and if that message sticks it would be devastating to them. > [@Guest-starring\_Id](#): > > But I fear, though, the MAGA evangelicals will never be reached. Yes, but there are Trump voting Christians that are (probably) reachable. My wife’s cousin and the cousin’s husband are very Baptist, and I’m very convinced voted Trump the first two times. They didn’t vote Harris in 2024, but they didn’t vote Trump, either. Just because you can’t get 100% doesn’t mean 50% (or even 5%) isn’t worthwhile. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4066 "2026-04-16T00:08:27Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > Just because you can’t get 100% doesn’t mean 50% (or even 5%) isn’t worthwhile. Exactly. Hard-core MAGA evangelicals are a totally lost cause, but there are a lot of other Christians who voted for Trump. Convincing them that the GOP is anti-Christian would be be a huge boost for the Dems. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4067 "2026-04-16T00:15:05Z")
Try Revelation quotes on them: 13:3 > And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. Revelation 13:5-6 – > “And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.” ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4068 "2026-04-16T00:16:14Z")
Or Daniel 7:25 – > “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.” Matthew 24:24 – > “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4069 "2026-04-16T00:39:00Z")
Y’all aren’t too familiar with evangelicals, eh? Never heard ‘the Devil can quote scripture’? These folks aren’t the sort of Christian who looks to guidance for how to be good and moral people. They’re the sort of Christian who already “know” they’re the good and moral ones. They just want a club that validates that belief. Also one they can claim as ‘theirs’ like it’s a sports team or something ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4070 "2026-04-16T00:47:10Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Democrats really need to get out the message that Republicans are anti-Christian. There is ample evidence of it, and if that message sticks it would be devastating to them. It’s been happening, at least at the local level, among individual church-goers. The problem for the Democratic Party is that many of its leaders don’t often speak in the language of Christianity. It’s not that they’re not Christian (although some are not), it’s that they feel good Christians shouldn’t sully their religion with politics. Maybe they should, but for true believers, that’s a difficult boundary to cross. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4071 "2026-04-16T03:19:46Z")
> [@Pleonast](#): > > The problem for the Democratic Party is that many of its leaders don’t often speak in the language of Christianity. They’re also just terrible at messaging overall. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4072 "2026-04-16T05:18:04Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Democrats really need to get out the message that Republicans are anti-Christian. There is ample evidence of it, and if that message sticks it would be devastating to them. I’ve been saying for quite some time, _It’s a SIN to vote for a Republican_. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2026, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4073 "2026-04-16T12:07:15Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > They’re the sort of Christian who already “know” they’re the good and moral ones. They just want a club that validates that belief. Plus in heaven they’ll get ringside seats looking down into the pit where the rest of us are being tortured. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4074 "2026-04-17T12:25:59Z")
This could go in several different threads. Remember the DOGE purge last year? Now look at the numbers. > ⁠U.S. ⁠Secretary of Health ​and Human ‌Services Robert F. ‌Kennedy ⁠Jr. ⁠said on Thursday his department ​now has 72,000 ​employees and is looking ⁠to ⁠hire 12,000 ⁠more to ​make up for ​cuts ⁠led by the Department ⁠of Government Efficiency. > > The department had 82,000 employees ⁠before the DOGE cuts reduced its workforce to 62,000 employees last year, ⁠he said. Cut 20,000 and hire 22,000. Another fine example of GOP math. Link to [USNews](https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2026-04-16/kennedy-says-us-health-agency-has-72-000-staff-up-from-62-000-after-doge-cuts) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4075 "2026-04-17T12:32:21Z")
Terminating those thousands of employees must have cost a considerable amount, as does recruiting and onboarding the newly hired employees. So was there any savings at all from what DOGE did, even if you set aside the damage done to operations and programs? And remember that some in the Department of Health and Human Services were paid not by the government by outside groups, like those who evaluate new medical devices and whose salaries are paid by industry fees. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4076 "2026-04-17T13:00:18Z")
The point was never efficiency. The point was to purge departments of ordinary non-partisan hires made over decades, eliminate most corporate knowledge, and then replace them rank and file with MAGAnuts. The new cadre will be whiter, maler, incompetenter, and definitely rightwinger. And yes, more numerous. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4077 "2026-04-17T13:37:41Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > So was there any savings at all from what DOGE did, Nope. Perhaps if you narrow it down to a sufficiently small individual group or department, you might be able to argue there was a savings at that level but overall, it appears to have [cost us billions](https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/07/31/2025/the-217-billion-blunder-new-psi-report-reveals-billions-in-taxpayer-dollars-squandered-by-doge) in direct and indirect costs (also - you think they were all “volunteers”?) and indirectly likely to be more as we now have to deal with the mess they left behind. Much of that cost was the inefficiency in how they did things. Hundreds of thousands of government employees who were to be let go were essentially paid not to work as their positions were eliminated or taking on new duties for which they weren’t trained as their co-workers were let go or lost interest and fees as those couldn’t be processed. As a putative efficiency measure, they were remarkably inefficiency and wasteful. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4078 "2026-04-17T13:38:19Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > So was there any savings at all from what DOGE did, even if you set aside **the damage done to operations and programs?** That’s the goal, not unintended consequences. ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4079 "2026-04-17T15:02:16Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > Plus in heaven they’ll get ringside seats looking down into the pit where the rest of us are being tortured To me, watching other people being tortured would be hell. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2026, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day-part-4/1014678/4080 "2026-04-17T15:43:57Z")
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