The Washington Post censored a headline by liberal political commentator Fareed Zakaria who was ripped apart by leftists on Twitter after he advised Democrats to “forget pronouns” to avoid being wiped out in the midterm elections.
On Thursday, The Washington Post ran with Zakaria’s headline, “Forget Pronouns: Democrats need to become the party of building things.” He shared the opinion piece link on Twitter, stating that getting “stuff done” is “a lot more important to most Americans than using the right pronouns.”
After that, all hell broke loose on Twitter as Democrats virtue signaled themselves into a frenzy. He was slammed by leftists and was heavily criticized for his assertion. Many lectured him on the importance of respecting pronouns and paying attention to the needs of transgender people.
Chasten Buttigieg, who is the husband of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, tweeted, “Addressing someone by the name/pronoun they prefer is free, easy, and kind. Using them builds community and belonging. Democrats can walk and chew gum. We can fix roads and build bridges while also making it a little easier to go about your life. That’s called freedom.”
He added, “It is wildly inappropriate to instruct Democrats to toss aside an entire group of Americans in order to win. Democrats are making historic investments and bold moves while proposing life-saving and democracy-strengthening legislation that republicans continue to vote no on.”
Democrats need to once more become the party that gets stuff done, builds things and makes government work for people. That’s a lot more important to most Americans than using the right pronouns.
My latest column: https://t.co/x8ULfqjdfQ
— Fareed Zakaria (@FareedZakaria) July 14, 2022
It is wildly inappropriate to instruct Democrats to toss aside an entire group of Americans in order to win. Democrats are making historic investments and bold moves while proposing life-saving and democracy-strengthening legislation that republicans continue to vote no on.
— Chasten Buttigieg (@Chasten) July 15, 2022
Other liberals claimed that Zakaria did not provide evidence that focusing on the issue of pronouns is keeping Democrats from making progress on other issues.
The Washington Post was evidently paying attention and felt they could not tolerate the backlash on social media. Friday evening, the headline was changed and the mention of pronouns was stripped from it. The title now reads, “Democrats need to become the party of building things.” They evidently did not alter the text of the article and no editor’s note was added to explain why the headline was changed.
Zakaria clapped back at Chasten Buttigieg on Twitter, writing, “I hope it is clear that I am NOT arguing against any minority groups. (I belong to several myself.) I am arguing against giving Republicans an easy way to demagogue and divert attention. If the Democrats are wiped out in the midterms, it will not help these embattled groups any!”
I hope it is clear that I am NOT arguing against any minority groups. (I belong to several myself.) I am arguing against giving Republicans an easy way to demagogue and divert attention. If the Democrats are wiped out in the midterms, it will not help these embattled groups any!
— Fareed Zakaria (@FareedZakaria) July 15, 2022
He gave a warning in his article to the Democrats concerning the midterm elections.
“There is plenty of evidence that the Democratic Party has moved left, that it is out of sync with Americans on many of these cultural issues and that it needs to correct course,” he noted.
“It needs to do so clearly, forcefully, and repeatedly,” Zakaria added, especially considering that the Republican Party is “clever at weaponizing the words of a few left-wing Democrats and branding them as the face of the party.”
The CNN host pointed out that GOP leaders, including former President Trump and Governor Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), have targeted the “radical vigilante woke mob” with a great deal of success due to issues such as pronoun usage.
“But this also reflects the looming electoral strategy among Republicans, who believe they have found a deep vulnerability among Democrats. A recent, comprehensive New York Times poll seemed to confirm this view,” he claimed.
He cited Times’ senior writer David Leonhardt’s analysis of that particular poll, which stated, “Many Democrats — both politicians and voters, especially on the party’s left flank … seem more focused on divisive cultural issues than on most Americans’ everyday concerns, like inflation.”
“Democrats in power often seem unable to get anything done,” Zakaria declared, stating that they “squabble more” than Republicans. He contended that Democrats should “become the party that gets stuff done, builds things, and makes government work for people.”
“That’s a lot more important to most Americans than using the right pronouns,” he concluded.
Leftists on Twitter refused to listen to his reasoning and blasted him, resulting in WaPo “adjusting” the headline.
This is a wild misreading of that Times poll to begin with, but if you conflate civil rights with pronoun etiquette and are completely unaware that you’re parroting a transphobic GOP talking point, maybe step back from the keyboard. pic.twitter.com/CtxxugbWnj
— Elizabeth Spiers (@espiers) July 15, 2022
I want to meet the democrats obsessed with pronouns and pleasing their activist base that big media columnists like @FareedZakaria are always completely making up
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) July 15, 2022
It's notable that Mr. Zakaria's column offers zero examples of Democrats "caring too much" about pronouns, despite that claim being literally half his thesis. If @FareedZakaria bothered to chat with trans people, he might learn we've been on the back-burner for quite time.
— Charlotte Clymer 🏳️⚧️🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) July 15, 2022
What the hell are you on about, @FareedZakaria? This is a truly deranged column. pic.twitter.com/uxJssGkfHT
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) July 15, 2022
Zero Democrats are running on pronouns. The middle and left of the party has long supported a job-creating, inflation-fighting, poverty-reducing reconciliation package but a handful of centrists keep blowing it up. Blame them, not trans people. https://t.co/sEUEOJT3mS
— Max Kennerly (@MaxKennerly) July 15, 2022
a) it's very cool that you don't give a shit about trans people
b) show me on the doll where Democrats have actually made pronouns a legislative priority rather than focusing on the stuff you say they should be focused on https://t.co/1MaWoFyk9w
— Sam Adams (@SamuelAAdams) July 15, 2022
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