The grassroots movement has been called "astroturf" for a long time. Nancy Pelosi did it when the TEA party emerged back in 2009.
"It's not really a grassroots movement. It's astroturf by some of the wealthiest people in America to keep the focus on tax cuts for the rich instead of for the great middle class."
It's a way to denigrate the efforts of millions of people who want to be represented by those who will shrink government.
I get it. There is no "polite" in politics. It's sharp elbows and insults in this daily fight to control everyone's life, liberty, and property.
Fast-forward to today. Here in Texas, there's a lot of establishment hay being made about hiring paid "influencers" to push a message. There's also this effort to label all of the pushback against our "Republican leadership" in the Texas House as a bunch of bots (paywall).
"An army of automated bots mobilized late last year to attack state Rep. Dustin Burrows on social media as the Lubbock Republican campaigned in a hotly contested race to become the next speaker of the Texas House, according to a data analysis prepared by a Republican social media marketing company and shared with Hearst Newspapers. The accounts on X blasted Burrows, who went on to win the race, as a 'RINO,' 'traitor,' and 'Democrat shill,' and they promised GOP primary attacks against his supporters."
That's a lot of fancy nonsense to call people "astroturf."
It's not the first time that the "bot" attack has been used. It was used to sow doubt about President Trump when he was running to become president.
"According to [an] Israel-based firm, someone created thousands of automated Twitter accounts that appear to be praising former President Donald Trump and criticizing his political rivals on both sides of the aisle. As soon as Nikki Haley announced a bid for the presidency in February 2023, ...bots [accused] Haley of being disloyal to her onetime boss."
I know very real people who criticized Burrows. I know very people who criticized Nikki Haley. Real messages from real people. Perhaps someone paid for some bots or paid "influencers" to push the same message. I don't know, and frankly, I don't really care.
In politics, it's very common to hire a vendor to push your message. When the establishment sends a zillion mailers to your home, the same bunch alleging "attacks by bots" think nothing of those mailers pushing a fake narrative.
Look at the two images in this post. It's the same image, same words - just fabricated for different establishment Republicans. Americans for Prosperity Texas did this for a dozen incumbents in the last Texas House primary.
In the mailer, AFP says that Texans asked for a secure border and property tax relief and the Rep pictured "delivered." These were sent in January 2024. Neither border security or tax relief happened. Fake news. But I didn't see story after story being written in the media (another form of hiring a vendor to push your message) about these fake news mailers.
Political messages are sent to us all of the time. As we the people are getting our sea legs and starting to stand up for ourselves against well-financed and powerful entities who want to keep hold of their power, they're going to accuse us of being manufactured opposition.
I don't have a problem with that. We're making headway. We're winning. They're whining. And there are more of us than them.
They can call us "bots" or "astroturf" all they like. As long as they count our very real votes at the ballot box as we continue to replace them, it's fine with me.
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Muslims call us infidels.
Atheists call us delusional.
Democrats call us homophobes, xenophobes, and whatever else their minds can conjure.
Jesus was called a glutton, winebibber, friend of prostitutes sinners, and Beelzebub.
Reviling and slander are the crafts of the intellectually deficient and dishonest.
The very real votes at the ballot box is all that counts! Plus, reading A Goal to Win!
Our eyes are fixed on the goal and they know it. If they weren’t concerned and believed us to be bots, they would ignore us. They know the truth and we appreciate living in their heads for free.
I’ll side with the deplorables any day! These politicians who have betrayed their constituents can live in their delusional world that we don’t exist they will find out the hard way in 2026!
They may call us bots, but no denying all the bus loads and van loads of live bots, wearing red “Ban Dem Chairs” that filled their Austin offices on January 14th. The reps know we are real. The “live bots” have been blowing up their phones and emails, too. Damage control propaganda from the left leaning democrats with R by their names.
Those of us who worked hard in the Tea Party days and more recestepped up to be precinct chairs and delegates to the RPT convention have significant "skin in the game. Participation im swampy Texas politics is not without personal sacrifice of time and $$$. We will NOT just throw up our hands and go quietly home to try again NEXT time. The time is now. We have been defrauded and are the victims of a political coup. Electoral fraud MUST have real political consequences, or we have to admit our work and our votes have never mattered. I hope to see our Attorney General step in here quickly. If this is allowed to stand, we are forced to conclude the only option is to get about abolishing and reforming as our Founders did in 1776 and 1836. TEXIT!