Thanks, Lee Zeldin
Americans are used by now to the too-fast-to-think ecosystem that is Twitter, the online forum in which posts are limited to 140 characters and in which the like-minded essentially echo one another in endless spirals of wit, while antagonists go for sharp rejoinders. Twitter is also a place where politicians sometimes lay bare their odder passing thoughts. Such was the case on Monday when Representative Lee Zeldin made an almost incomprehensible comment following the capture of the man suspected of the recent Manhattan bombing. In its entirety, Mr. Zeldin wrote, “Suspect in custody. You are welcome, Colin Kaepernick.”
Mr. Kaepernick is the San Francisco 49ers football quarterback who has declined to stand for the national anthem in protest of police shootings of people of color. Figuring out exactly what Mr. Zeldin meant by his post is difficult; even he probably does not know. That did not stop plenty of people from going to Twitter to turn his point around, however.
One reaction read, “13-year-old Tyre King shot down by police from behind in cold blood. Thanks, Lee Zeldin.” Others made the point that Ahmed Khan Rahami, the terror suspect, was taken alive, unlike the many black, unarmed Americans killed by police. Another Twitter user offered “. . . if only Kaepernick had stood for the anthem these past two weeks, we could have caught the terrorist three hours sooner probably.”
Mr. Zeldin’s outburst mirrors the recurring bombast on Twitter from Donald Trump, who has made a campaign out of this kind of drivel. The comment can be heard as a kind of racist code, intended to speak directly to an embittered, paranoid fringe among First Congressional District voters. In a statement, Mr. Zeldin subsequently defended his post, saying, “I unapologetically love our country and our heroes who defend us. I’m insulted and disgusted when someone refuses to say the pledge or stand for the national anthem.”
We have previously criticized Mr. Zeldin for jumping on the Trump bandwagon and called him unfit to continue to serve in Congress. He has shown that to be the case once again.