A die-hard Trumper in Florida says he was discriminated against by a right-wing political advocacy group, claiming he was called a “slave” during his 12 days with the organization before it fired him for complaining.

Carl Baxter, who is Black, is suing Americans for Prosperity, the nonprofit “grassroots” conservative operation established by Charles and David Koch, the billionaire siblings and hard-line climate change deniers.

Baxter serves as president of the Republican Club of North & East Fort Myers, and is not at all shy about his outsized affection for Donald Trump. He can be seen on social media at Trump appearances, waving a MAGA flag at a “Trump Truck Parade,” at charity galas giving the camera a Trumpian “thumbs-up,” and donning a red MAGA hat and posing with, among others, a county tax collector who has come out as a vociferous opponent of critical race theory.

  • MrJameGumb@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    It sucks that he’s having to deal with all that, but seriously I have to wonder what did he expect would happen when he chose to support an organization that has made it clear that they despise his entire race?

      • dudinax@programming.dev
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        2 months ago

        He may be trying to help all the poor oppressed white folk. I doubt it, but if he’s gone clear around the bend he might believe it.

    • qooqie@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      I have a theory that some don’t realize they are the token black man/woman or just enjoy the attention of the role

  • DandomRude@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    I have no sympathy for opportunists like this guy. I just don’t buy that they don’t know who they’ve gotten involved with. They know full well, but are so unscrupulous that they would sell out their own mother for the prospect of power and influence. It was people like this that helped Hitler to power in his day: The Nazi terror regime was only possible because Hitler was supported by conservatives and influential businessmen who saw him as a means to an end and thought they could control him. We all know how that went.

    • Greyghoster@aussie.zone
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      2 months ago

      What you are saying is a reasonable take on all points. I do think that there are those people who sign on to an idea or cause and can never shake it. Similar to a gambling addiction or conspiracy beliefs like Flat Earthers. Being called a slave by his conservative mates isn’t enough to break through, I hate to think how much pain is required before his reality shifts.

      • DandomRude@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Yes, this attitude is also widespread among cult members, who often allow themselves to be excessively exploited by their leaders. I assume that the “teachings” they adhere to have somehow become part of their personality, an identity-forming factor. Realizing that they are being taken advantage of would mean that they have dedicated their lives to a lie, which is of course difficult to admit. These mechanisms are certainly complex and often built on elaborate scams. Nevertheless, I have to say that I also have little sympathy for such obviously instrumentalized people when they actively and often aggressively try to recruit others for their misguided ideas - all the less so when it comes to ideas that seek to restrict other people’s personal freedom, as is the case with the racist and mysogynistic beliefs of the Trump cult. These people are dangerous, even if they have no insight into what they are actually doing.

  • Jumi@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    In other news, face-eating leopards still eat faces.

    Sorry, I missed the sub I’m in

    • Asafum@feddit.nl
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      2 months ago

      It’s ok there’s always another generation behind them. We’ll never truly be rid of rich assholes that want to shape the world to fit their ideals unfortunately :(

    • Saledovil@sh.itjust.works
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      2 months ago

      It’s their wealth that’s the problem, not them personally. The wealth won’t be broken up when they die. It just goes to someone else, who will be in the same position as them and will act similarly.

      • deconstruct@lemm.eeOP
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        2 months ago

        Happens more often than not. Trump’s billionaire donor Sheldon Adelson died three years ago and now his wife is giving even larger sums to Trump.

  • some_guy@lemmy.sdf.org
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    2 months ago

    AFP, which has been around since 2004, gained prominence after Barack Obama was sworn in as president. It has traditionally focused on hollowing out workers’ rights, blocking Medicaid expansion, kneecapping green energy initiatives, and pushing down the minimum wage. Since 2010, some 42 percent of AFP’s ads have been rated “false” by PolitiFact, the nonpartisan fact-checking website; none have been rated “true.” The group backed Trump’s UN ambassador Nikki Haley in the 2024 presidential race before the former South Carolina governor bowed out in March.

    Terrible policies, as expected, from the Koch brothers. These guys have been harming society at a massive scale for years.

    The lawsuit says Baxter still has not received the wages AFP owes him, nor has he been paid back for any of his mileage. By the same token, Baxter claims in his suit that AFP paid its white employees without issue. The suit accuses AFP of race discrimination, retaliation, and wage theft, and demands back pay and legal fees, as well as exemplary, punitive, and compensatory damages “for Plaintiff’s emotional pain and suffering.”

    It’s tough for me to feel bad for you when you joined a thieving ring and then got robbed.

  • iAvicenna@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    surprise surprise. like the conservative women complaining that their husbands dont respect them