Photo via @meridithmcgraw/Twitter, Jennifer/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
July 14, 2021, 11:40 am
U.S. Republicans have been caught using Britney Spears’ plight as she fights her abusive conservatorship as a cynical ploy to gather more people’s contact information and inevitably spam them with donation requests, complete with a donation button in the corner.
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This was originally exposed on Twitter by POLITICO correspondent Meridith McGraw who posted screenshots of a text message she received from the National Republican Congressional Committee and the landing page it took her to.
This kind of trick is a common one used by political groups on either side of the aisle—giving the impression that providing one’s information will sign some kind of petition that might make a real impact on the issue. However, it’s clear from the vague language and disclaimers that there is no petition and the House Republicans would simply like to send you more text messages asking you for money.
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“By providing your phone number, you are joining a recurring text messaging program for the NRCC,” reads the disclaimer at the bottom of the landing page.
The text messages describe Spears as a “victim of toxic gov’t overreach and censorship,” which is not exactly how the pop star described her own situation when arguing for her freedom in front of a judge.
“But my precious body who has worked for my dad for the past f—ing 13 years, trying to be so good and pretty,” she said during her court hearing. “So perfectly. He works me so hard. When I do everything I’ve told in the state of California allowed my father—ignorant father—to take his own daughter, who only has a role with me, if I work with him, they’ve set back the whole course and allowed him to do that, to me, that’s given these people I’ve worked for way too much control.”
Though there is currently a debate raging on the topic of conservatorship laws and their impacts on mentally ill and disabled people, often giving far-reaching power to those who do not have their best interest at heart, Spears herself did not characterize this quite in the same way Republicans have. Instead, they’ve morphed the issue to fit their own vetted talking points.
It seems highly unlikely that the NRCC received Spears’ consent to use her very traumatizing plight to make themselves money, which is ironic considering that a big part of her complaint is that she has no control over her own name and image, with her dad using it to enrich himself at her expense. While it would be nice if we could all be on the same side on an issue for once, Republicans are making it very clear that they don’t actually care about the woman beyond how they can use her to enrich the party.
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https://twitter.com/IzzyRxdriguez/status/1415377465141252098?s=20
*First Published: July 14, 2021, 11:40 am
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