'Check yourself!' MAGA lawmaker erupts into expletive-laden tirade in Senate hearing

Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) launched into a tirade Tuesday during a Senate hearing where he angrily floated debunked conspiracy theories, shouted an expletive, and blamed "the left” for most instances of political violence.

Specifically, Schmitt accused George Soros, the billionaire philanthropist who supports liberal political causes, of instigating violence, supported in part by a broad conspiracy between academia and media.

“The George Soros empire has financed a vast ecosystem of radicals, all working together, dropping off bricks at riots to unleash a tidal wave of violent anarchists on our streets!” Schmitt shouted, speaking at a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. “And [they] prop it up with an army of researchers, experts, journalists and propagandists who downplay the political violence!”

Soros is a frequently-cited “bogeyman” for the far right, having been the scorn of many MAGA faithful since President Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Schmitt’s claim that Soros funded an effort to supply rioters with bricks is another common claim from the far right, one that has been thoroughly debunked on multiple occasions, including during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, and as recently as the protests in Los Angeles this past summer.

And yet, Schmitt continued his tirade, arguing that “the left” was disproportionately responsible for the recent upsurge in political violence.

“We've heard years of the left, their loudest voices, calling anyone on the right extremists!” Schmitt shouted. “Extremist-MAGA Republicans, fascists, Nazis, an existential threat to democracy. Check yourself, and don't give me this both-sides bull----!”

Schmitt’s claim that “the left” was the primary instigator of political violence is refuted, however, by multiple studies, including one published last week by the libertarian think tank the Cato Institute. In its study, the think tank found that of all murders from terrorist attacks since 1975, “right-wingers” were responsible for 11% of them, and “left-wing terrorists,” 2%.