Mean-spirited partisan bickering in the House has become so nasty that a Missouri Democrat and fan of horror movies has dispatched a letter to all members warning that the situation is fast becoming a “Congressional Frankenstein.”
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II of Kansas City, Mo., wrote that both sides of aisle are creating “our own monster” that is blocking any chance of political partnership.
“When we engage in uncivil behavior, we create our own monster,” he wrote in a January 27 letter to all House members and provided to the Examiner. “Congress is slowly but surely bringing its own monster called acrimony to life, albeit in an unscientific manner. The Congressional Frankenstein now needlessly obstructs the goodwill and statesmanship of this body,” he warned in his one-page note.
A spokeswoman said that his letter is part of a so-far unsuccessful bid by the lawmaker and United Methodist pastor to return civility to the House. She said that the lawmaker has penned 13 letters to House members so far. “The inspiration for these letters varies, but the theme is civility and striving to be and do better,” she said.
For this one, Cleaver was also inspired by his passion for horror movies. “I am a monster movie maestro,” he declared.
He chose to compare the House to Frankenstein because the monster turned on its creator, Dr. Frankenstein. “As we all know, the Frankenstein monster wreaks the most havoc on its creator,” he wrote in comparing the character to House members. “Today, when we use the expression, ‘a Frankenstein monster,’ we are suggesting that an individual was squashed by his or her own doing. Dr. Frankenstein’s major mistate was somehow giving life to the monster,” he adds.
His spokeswoman adds that “the congressman is, really and truly, a big fan of monster and horror movies.” And apparently, only the classics. Because in his unusual letter, he takes a swipe at the newfound love for modern-day vampire tales. “I am protesting these new Twilight movies,” he writes. “They are disgusting. After all, everyone knows that real vampires and real werewolves don’t date the same girl. This is a travesty that must be addressed by the horror scholars of this generation, otherwise millions of young kids will grow to adulthood thinking that Twilight movies are as accurate as Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula.'”
