With the Republicans in control of the government, semi-functional replicant Paul Ryan is more bullish than ever on the idea of passing substantial tax code reform, by which he means to cut taxes on the obscenely rich under the guise of, uh, simplification. Today, Ryan advocated for his tax reform plan with a stupid Taylor Swift meme. Check this shit out:
America's music tastes have changed since 1986, but our tax code hasn’t. It’s time. https://t.co/FMZZNwFu7O pic.twitter.com/fSqwPYAURu
— Paul Ryan (@SpeakerRyan) September 22, 2017
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That’s the Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian” on the left, and Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” on the right. It’s accompanied by a series of other memes comparing culture in 1986 to culture in 2017. The suggestion is simple: because life in 2017 is so drastically different from life in 1986, we need a tax code that accurately reflects the time. But the Bangles/Swift comparison is conceptually nonsensical: On one hand, we have an upbeat pop song by a group of female musicians, and on the other, we have … an upbeat pop song by a female musician? The Bangles and Swift aren’t so far apart on the pop radio spectrum that we have to pretend like there’s been some evolutionary leap.
Ryan might have more of an argument if, next week, Cardi B’s “Bodak Yellow” displaces Swift from the top spot. Even so, it would be a pretty dumbassed analogy to use when talking about legislation that would effectively reshape the American economy. Because we liked the Bangles 31 years ago, we should ditch the inheritance tax? But appearances aside, Ryan has never made much of a point. And now he can’t even use a meme!
