What with Il Trumpe getting indicted last week (and it doesn’t look good!), a lot of stories have been disappeared into the memory hole. But one smaller story should be an example of how the extremist right–which is now the majority of the Republican Party–should be fought (boldface mine):

The House Oversight Committee was holding a hearing on the effects of environmental, social and governance (ESG), a corporate strategy intended to lessen the negative effects of business. But of course, conservative activists want to make it part of the culture war, which is exactly what Mandy Gunasekara, director of the Independent Women’s Forum’s Center on Energy and Conservation, testified to at the hearing, submitting a statement that said, “ESG is a tool to advance the Left’s broader cultural agenda” like “efforts to promote ‘gender transitions’ for children.” Remember, this is a corporate strategy we are talking about.

By the time Balint was called on for questioning, she’d had it.

“One of the things that you said in [the information] you provided is that the dangers of ESG include promoting gender transitions in children,” she said. “And I want to know, do you really believe that garbage?”

“It’s not about believing, it’s a matter of fact,” Gunasekara replied.

“So you believe that investing strategies are actually…weaponized to support and promote gender transition for children?” Balint said. “Is, essentially, is that what you’re saying, or do you just use it as another opportunity to beat up on children?”

Well, when you say it like that, Congresswoman…

Seriously, this is how this crap needs to handled: not by talking around it in vague generalities, but by pushing back on specifics. Once you do that, the ‘seriousness’ of the arguments fall, and their ridiculousness is exposed.

Related: I came across this related post by Steve M. at No More Mister Nice Guy.