Ms. Spears Goes to Washington
A hashtag that became a cause that became a political talking point
OK, OK, I’m sorry. When I unleashed Jack Hughes on you, I figured we’d have some fun following his flights of fancy as he drew pop culture parallels with politics. None of us expected those timelines to merge. This is on me. After all, Jack’s name is a homonym for j'accuse. The joke, as they say, is on me. In any case, Matt Gaetz (yes, that douche nozzle) has appointed himself head of the #FreeBritney movement and here we are.
by Jack Hughes
Back in March The Experiment castigated GOP Congressman Matt Gaetz for calling on POP Songstress Britney Spears to appear before the House Judiciary Committee to testify about her conservatorship. We even mused whether Gaetz’s handling of the issue proved the Republican Party itself should be placed under a conservatorship – and that was before the New York Times broke the news he was under investigation.
Now, three months later, Gaetz has renewed his quixotic campaign to bring Britney before Congress by writing to her directly. Gaetz’s personal letter, which he made public, said she’s been “mistreated by America’s legal system” and “Congress can make things better.” Leaving aside for a moment whether the latter is true (except to note it’s odd that a Republican said it), there’s an emerging consensus around the former.
When Britney broke her silence about her conservatorship back in June to a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge, her testimony made global headlines. Britney’s account of how she’s been forced to live and work over the past decade was outrageous and enraging, leading many of her friends and fans to call for her to be released from restrictions that were put in place back when George W. Bush was in office.
Britney’s testimony was a cry for help. In her telling, she’s been in a fight for her life – in a sense figuratively and literally – against her family, managers, doctors, and even her lawyers. And while there are still lots of facts that have yet to be made public concerning the reasons why her conservatorship has been in place so long, what was crystal clear is that Britney is extremely frustrated nobody was listening to her.
Britney explained in extensive detail how little control she had over her personal and professional decisions, including her inability to be open and honest about her ordeal – something to which she kept returning: “I have a lot to say…I don’t think I was heard on any level when I came to Court the last time…I would like to share my story with the world…I want to be able to be heard…I have a right to use my voice.”
Gaetz’s letter was clearly drafted to appeal to Britney’s sense of powerlessness and of being silenced. His invitation was carefully couched in language to suggest he was offering her an audience: “The United States Congress should hear your story…If you will speak to Congress, we are ready to listen…Your story is so powerful…Please take advantage of the empowerment that public congressional testimony can unlock.”
Proudly describing himself as the ‘leader’ of the Free Britney movement in Congress, Gaetz expanded on this theme with both Newsmax and One America News. “Britney Spears wants to tell her story, she’s not someone who wants to just crawl under a rug...I would love to see Britney Spears express that specific interest in coming to Congress and sharing her story.” The scary thing is Gaetz might be on to something.
When Britney appeared before the Court again in mid-July, she won an important victory by being allowed to retain a new attorney – noted former prosecutor Mathew Rosengart – one whom she chose herself. During the same hearing, though, Britney asked to address the Court. Rosengart, her hand-picked lawyer, then asked for the courtroom to be closed but Britney interrupted him saying “I can talk with it open.”
Then, this week, Britney posted a message on Instagram which said, in part, “I will never be able to let go and move on until I’ve said all I needed to say…and I’m not even close!!!! I was told to stay quiet about things for so long and I finally feel like I’m just getting here !!!!” In that light, Gaetz’s invitation for Britney to come before Congress might seem like a lifeline to her - but why is Gaetz so damned adamant that she do so?
A clue may be in found in the fact that Gaetz’s letter to Britney was co-signed by pro-Trump Republicans Andy Biggs of Arizona, Burgess Owens of Utah, and, of course, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia. While the letter claims her testimony could help “inform our policy decisions,” and a follow up tweet by Gaetz insisted they’re “very serious about conservatorship and guardianship reform,” I have my doubts.
Gaetz’s lack of seriousness was on full display when he flew to L.A. to personally attend a #FreeBritney rally outside the courthouse where her conservatorship hearing was taking place. Speaking to the crowd, a sunglassed Gaetz called out her “grifter father” Jamie and, in a unique and unusual attempt to unite Americans, observed “there’s a lot that still divides us but one thing we can all agree on is that Jamie Spears is a dick!”
Gaetz’s Free Britney movement in Congress might garner more trust and traction if it were supported by Republican leaders. If, say, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy were to weigh in on it both as the leader of the Republican Conference and an elected Representative from the State of California (where Britney Spears lives and whose conservatorship laws she’s challenging), it might then be seen as, well, serious.
Of course, there are many reasons why McCarthy wouldn’t back Gaetz on this – or, indeed, on anything else – not the least of which being that the very week Gaetz renewed his effort to Free Britney he came out and said McCarthy shouldn’t be the next Speaker of the House. In fairness, Gaetz didn’t exactly say that – but what he did say was worse: He’s got a plan to get Donald Trump elected Speaker after the midterms.
If McCarthy isn’t worried about a Gaetz-led coup, he should remember the case of his former colleague Eric Cantor who was House Majority Leader when he was upset in the 2014 Republican primary by a candidate from the Tea-Party wing. While Gaetz isn’t a Tea-Party Republican he is a TMZ-Party Republican – meaning that if he can get an A-list celebrity like Britney before Congress his star will only burn brighter.
So, is that what this is all about? Is Gaetz trying to resurrect Trump by rescuing Britney? We may soon find out. While Britney Spears has yet to “express that specific interest in coming to Congress and sharing her story” to use Gaetz’s oddly precise phrasing (suggesting a subpoena is on offer), her recent comments suggest she’s looking for an outlet to let out her story. It begs the question: will Ms. Spears go to Washington?
Jack Hughes is a communications consultant based in Canada. His previous contributions to The Experiment include “Same of Thrones,” “Tippecanoe and Agnew Anew,” “Harris / Shuri 2020,” “Bidenfeld,” “Firth and Firthiness,” “The Ballot of Bill McKay,” and “The World Wants ‘The West Wing,’” among others. His inexplicably extensive writings on Dan Quayle are “The Unusual Suspect,” “The Unusual Suspect II,” “The GOPfather,” “Porqua, CoQau?” and “Quayle’s Hunting Season.” Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
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