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It’s not often that we get to praise elected officials for complete candor and unvarnished honesty. But today we get to do exactly that for Congressman Rodney Davis.
I have been trying for weeks to secure an interview with the congressman on a variety of issues in Washington, from infrastructure to Davis’s vote against enforcing congressional subpoenas or holding colleagues accountable for promoting violent imagery against other members of Congress. And for weeks, the congressman, through his taxpayer-funded staff, has repeatedly ignored such requests before ultimately declining the offer.
Through these editorials and in on-air commentary, I have been vocally critical of the congressman, both for his questionable votes on those issues and his refusal to answer questions about them.
But now the congressman has opted to go on another radio program, where he was asked about his refusal to come on my show. And here’s where the congressman got very honest and very real, when he said:
“Publicly criticizing me doesn’t make me do something like go on an opinion show…. Jim knows when he has his news director hat on, I’m happy to talk to him at any press conference and answer any questions. But when you dedicate a lot of your show, and the show’s social media platform, to just criticizing Darin LaHood and me on a regular basis, that’s an opinion show…. This is a problem with social media today, and unfortunately for some, you know, the criticism is not making me want to go on an opinion show any time sooner.”
For the record, it is true that I wear multiple hats. I report the news, accurately and objectively. But I also offer analysis and viewpoints, both through my talk show and through these editorials. The congressman is correct that there is a difference between news conferences and a daily talk show. But the questions that I would ask on my show are no different than the questions I would ask in a news conference setting. And Davis frequently goes on programs where opinions are a regular part of the discussion. And that’s apparently fine – as long as he agrees with those opinions.
Last time I checked, Rodney Davis was elected to represent, and answer to, every resident of the 13th Congressional District, not just those who never dare to criticize him. It speaks volumes that if you disagree with the congressman’s positions or question his rationalizations for those votes, he simply doesn’t want to hear from you.
The congressman’s problem isn’t a difference of opinion… it’s a difference of reality. Congressman Davis claims that he had to vote against the infrastructure bill because he opposes a completely separate piece of legislation. It’s a nonsensical assertion that he knows he would be pressed on – but only if he subjects himself to that question.
Similarly, the congressman has talked a lot about the need to restore civility to Congress, yet he voted against censuring a fellow Republican who tweeted, and retweeted, a doctored anime video depicting him carrying out a violent attack on other politicians. Davis can’t have it both ways… unless he only talks with people who blindly accept the inconsistencies in his stance.
It’s sad that Rodney Davis is so sensitive that he only wants to conduct interviews that won’t challenge or criticize him. And if he won’t even answer difficult questions from a talk show host, one can only imagine how quickly he discards any criticism from constituents who disagree with his positions or his votes.
But at least the congressman admits that criticizing him just makes him even more opposed to entertaining tough questions, so I suppose he deserves credit for that. His constituents deserve better, of course, but at least they know where they stand, especially if they have the audacity to disagree with him.
