This was prompted by something that my editor Paula passed along to me last week.
I like goats. They're weird, destructive, and will eat anything. Sort of like me as a little boy.
I also like the idea of Democratic politicians living in faraway countries where they can no longer screw things up in the United States. They're always blathering on about being more like Europe — specifically France — so they should be amenable to this too.
France was particularly popular with the Dems back in the '90s when B.J. Clinton got caught with his pants down in the Oval Office. Democrats were required by internal code to never utter more than three sentences without saying, "You know, in France, they all have mistresses."
Good for them. The French can have all sorts of personal freedoms because, thanks to the United States, they're not part of the Third Reich. Yeah, they helped us in the Revolutionary War, but we were a ragtag band of rebels. France was a fully grown-up country in World War II. There was no excuse for their behavior.
And we're more than even, by the way.
What Paula sent me last week was this article over at Roll Call about a former congresscritter:
Former Rep. Jim McDermott is the rare lawmaker who has been able to live out all the policies he worked for during his decades in Washington.
He just had to move to another country to do it.
From a quaint French village about 90 minutes outside of Bordeaux, the longtime liberal lawmaker enjoys free health care and a safe community where he doesn’t need to lock his doors at night. He loves that kids in the neighborhood don’t worry about gun violence and that women have access to reproductive care, specifically abortion. He reads the news every day but says he doesn’t miss America all that much.
The kids are all right—if they make it through the abortion gauntlet and out of the womb, that is.
Of course, McDermott doesn't miss America all that much. Democrats hate America, hence the lust for all things European and socialist.
The article goes on about all of the ways that McDermott is enjoying the largesse of the French government/taxpayers. Those taxpayers are currently in the middle of the "moderately free" zone of the Index of Economic Freedom, ranking behind almost every Eastern European country and some place called Cabo Verde. The United States has taken a tumble under Biden but still ranks 27 places ahead of France in the "mostly free" neighborhood.
Of course, McDermott doesn't have to worry about the exorbitant value-added taxes in France. He's living off of a nice American congressional pension.
He became a goat farmer during COVID, which really annoys me. I've been fascinated with goats for a few years and kind of wanted them to be my thing. Democrats try to ruin everything, but I'm not going to let them taint my affinity for these adorable natural garbage disposals.
McDermott's story has inspired me, though. I'd like to start fundraising for a charity that sponsors the moves of congressional Democrats to France. It will only fund Democrats who are currently in office and are willing to leave their seats. You know I'll get some takers. I'll even sweeten the pot for those in leadership. Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries could go halfsies on a rustic cottage and become marvelous expat cheese makers in France. Excuse me: fromagers.
If the Democrats keep hanging around here, I'll probably be looking into expat options. Come visit me and my goats in Costa Rica, won't you?
I hope they have goats in Costa Rica.
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