Chuck Darwin<p>The GOP, already the party of sexism, is getting more gratuitous with its toxic masculinity. <br>Everywhere one looked at the convention, Republicans were exalting maleness <br>with an ardor that reads as "defensive" to outsiders but appears to be a convincing display to those inside the MAGA cult. <br>The overcompensation led to a grand finale featuring both pro wrestler <a href="https://c.im/tags/Hulk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Hulk</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Hogan" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Hogan</span></a> and Ultimate Fighting Championship president <a href="https://c.im/tags/Dana" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Dana</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/White" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>White</span></a>, <br>rather than the traditional activists and politicians one hears at a convention. <br>Hogan declared Trump a "<a href="https://c.im/tags/gladiator" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>gladiator</span></a>," <br>which should be funny applied to a doughy senior citizen caked in make-up, -- but appears to have been taken at face value by the RNC crowd. <br>Along with the James Brown song, Trump used "<a href="https://c.im/tags/Macho" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Macho</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Man" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Man</span></a>" by the Village People as intro music, still indifferent to the irony of the song. </p><p>The boys club vibe spread throughout the convention. <br>Women were welcome, but only as support staff. <br>A few years ago, female provocateurs like <a href="https://c.im/tags/Greene" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Greene</span></a> were riding high, feeling like they could troll their way into MAGA stardom like their male counterparts. <br>The message being sent at the GOP's 2024 convention: <br>It's time for the gals to take a back seat. <br><a href="https://c.im/tags/Kari" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Kari</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Lake" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Lake</span></a>, the current GOP senate candidate for Arizona and failed gubernatorial candidate, did not have a good convention. <br>Her speech was early in the evening on Tuesday, and poorly attended. <br>Lake, a former newscaster, is not getting the juice she seemed to think would be hers if she rebranded as a MAGA loudmouth. <br>She did her best, dropping the <a href="https://c.im/tags/Sarah" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Sarah</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Palin" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Palin</span></a>-associated phrase<br> "mama bear" liberally throughout her speech. <br>She even tried to rile up the crowd by yelling "fake news" at the media section. <br>The two-minute hate fell flat. <br>There were only a handful of reporters even sitting in the press section. Even Fox News declined to air her speech. <br><a href="https://www.salon.com/2024/07/20/the-clearest-message-of-the-convention-is-no-country-for-maga-women/" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">salon.com/2024/07/20/the-clear</span><span class="invisible">est-message-of-the-convention-is-no-country-for-maga-women/</span></a></p>