The Point: Lauren Boebert isn't sorry

View this email in your browser   November 30, 2021  | by Chris Cillizza and Lauren Dezenski Lauren Boebert isn't sorry On Monday, Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert (R) called Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar (D) to, ostensibly, apologize for suggesting that simply because Omar is a Muslim, she is a potential terrorist. The call, um, did not go well. After Omar demanded that Boebert apologize publicly and Boebert refused, the Democrat hung up on the Republican.     At which point, Boebert took to social media (of course!) to make clear she wasn't actually sorry.   "I will fearlessly continue to put America first, never sympathizing with terrorists," Boebert said in the post. "Unfortunately Ilhan can't say the same thing and our country is worse off for it." Then came new reporting Tuesday from CNN's KFile on a speech Boebert gave in September in which she suggested that Omar was a terrorist in addition to being "black-hearted" and "evil."   Add it up and you get this: Not only is Boebert not sorry for what she said about Omar but she actually believes it. This wasn't some slip of the tongue for Boebert; it was a real belief.   All of which raises a simple question: What are House Republicans going to do about it?   If past is prologue, the answer is nothing. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has resisted punishing the likes of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar for past impolitic comments, leaving it to the Democratic-controlled House to sanction them.   Considering that, the real decision may lie in Speaker Nancy Pelosi's hands.  Does she want to hold another vote to penalize another Republican for making offensive comments? And if not, why not? The Point: Unfortunately, the Republican base responds in a positive way to junk like this from Boebert. Which means she is incentivized to lean into it -- no matter the consequences in the House.   -- Chris QUOTE OF THE DAY "I pull for him every day, I pray for him every night" -- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin. The two met on Tuesday — Manchin said they "talked a lot about the areas we represent — Kentucky and West Virginia," and suggested they also talked about the debt limit. TUESDAY'S MUST-SEE TWEETS 1. Mike Pence's case for 2024 2. Vaccines work. Duh. 3. We are getting married later and later 4. Prove him wrong 5. This is deliciously nerdy CHRIS' GOOD READS "December Dread" is not a phrase that Democrats want to read. But, according to Politico, it is exactly what they're experiencing at the moment.   This is a very good side-by-side comparison by The Washington Post of the Trump and Biden presidencies as they relate to Covid-19 deaths.   Really important stuff from WaPo here on local news deserts -- and what we are losing in them.   I will read any Lorne Michaels profile. Especially one as good as this from The Washington Post.   Before Covid, Bali was overrun by tourists. Now? They can't convince anyone to come back, reports The Wall Street Journal. MUSICAL INTERLUDE Lord Huron is my wife's second favorite band. (U2 has a death grip on the #1 slot.)  So do her a favor and check out the band's new cover of Neil Young's "Harvest Moon."   -- Chris MEANWHILE, IN PENNSYLVANIA Dr. Mehmet Oz, the cardiothoracic surgeon and television personality, is running for the US Senate in Pennsylvania as a Republican, reports CNN's Michael Warren.   Oz joins a crowded field vying to replace retiring Sen. Pat Toomey that already includes Philadelphia-area businessman (and 2018 lieutenant governor nominee) Jeff Bartos and Carla Sands, who served as US ambassador to Denmark under President Donald Trump. Another potential Republican candidate is David McCormick, a former official in the Treasury Department under President George W. Bush.    Oz said in a 2007 interview that he would "consider" running for office someday, calling himself a "moderate Republican. He also has connections to Trump. In 2018, Trump appointed Oz to the Presidential Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition, and reappointed him in 2020. BIDEN'S LOW APPROVAL RATINGS, EXPLAINED President Joe Biden's approval ratings have hit an all-time low for him at 36%, which is worse than former Presidents Trump and Obama ever had in office.   In the latest episode of The Point, Chris talks about what this means for Biden and other Democrats moving forward and if he can bounce back.   Stick with The Point on YouTube and subscribe! ONE BIG DEADLINE Christmas Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer aims to get Biden's social safety net expansion bill through the Senate by Christmas. Schumer met with longtime holdout Sen. Joe Manchin on Tuesday (just like McConnell!) to discuss the West Virginia Democrat's concern with climate change provisions in the bill -- Schumer would not tell reporters if Manchin was interested in the leader's Christmas deadline. You are receiving this message because you subscribed to CNN's The Point with Chris Cillizza newsletter. Unsubscribe from this list Check out other CNN Newsletters Create your CNN Account Share the Point Newsletter Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get The Point in your inbox.   Send your tips and thoughts via email to Chris Cillizza and Lauren Dezenski. You can follow Chris and Lauren on Twitter and connect with The Point on: Our mailing address is: One CNN Center Atlanta, GA 30303   Copyright © 2021 Cable News Network, Inc., All rights reserved.