Like his spirit animal, Donald Trump, Rep. Clay Higgins first sought out reality TV before taking his shtick to Washington.
opinion columnist
LZ Granderson
LZ Granderson writes about culture, politics, sports, and living life in America.
And if “American Justice with Clay Higgins” had taken off, maybe the people of Springfield, Ohio, would have one less member of Congress using their small town to drive racists to the polls, as they did with his tweet since deleted calling Haitian immigrants “thugs” and “gangsters.”
And make no mistake: Higgins himself probably would have preferred reality TV fame to a seat in Congress.
In 2015, when he was a Louisiana police officer, he gained national attention through a series of campy online videos called “Crime Stoppers.” That taste of fame captured his imagination, and by 2016, Higgins had a nickname, “Cajun John Wayne,” and interest from the executive producer of “Duck Dynasty.”
Captain Higgins also had many work emails that showed him negotiating personal appearance fees and marketing opportunities during work time. That was not the only reason he was forced to resign. We'll get to that later. Just know that when he was no longer a police officer, the “Duck Dynasty” opportunity fell apart.
In January 2016, the movie “Ride Along 2” was released, with Ice Cube and Kevin Hart playing the police officers. The following month, Higgins resigned. He then released “Higgins Ride Along 2” on the Captain Clay Higgins YouTube channel, playing a police officer.
In the YouTube video, a camera followed Higgins as he drove a powerful car down the road. He had a cut that, ironically, showed a lack of definition. The black patch on the bag in front of the camera read “SHERIFF,” although Higgins never was one. On the other hand, Higgins embraced “Cajun John Wayne,” and he is not a Cajun.
“Is it going to be a television show? I don't know,” he said, while claiming that more than 20 television executives had approached him. “I'm not going to be any clown, I can assure you that. It will carry my message of righteousness or it will not exist.”
In May 2016, Higgins had a gun holstered and was wearing a shirt with sleeves when he announced was running for congress. He wanted to be rich and famous before he wanted to serve in Congress, and this House run was a last-ditch effort to salvage what was left of his 15 minutes of fame. He understands, like Trump, that the best way to keep people talking about you is to give them something to talk about.
Even if it encourages violence or is racist.
Consider this: This January, Higgins saying, “The feds are organizing a civil war and Texas should stand its ground” after a Supreme Court ruling sided with the U.S. Constitution. In April, Higgins was heard on a conservative podcast claiming that the Trump-inspired attack on the Capitol on January 6 “was a nefarious agenda to ensnare MAGA Americans” by the FBI.
After deleting his recent racist post about immigrants in Springfield, which began: “Lol. These Haitians are savages,” before descending into much worse things. Higgins later said, “You never want to intentionally hurt someone's feelings.”
Which brings us to his career as an officer and why he was forced to resign.
In one of his “Crime Stoppers” videos, he refers to alleged members of a gang wanted by authorities as animals. He describes the investigation as a hunt in which it was necessary to catch the suspects. The individuals shown on screen were predominantly black and brown. After Higgins resigned, he seized on the rumor that the video had forced his resignation, as if he were a victim of “political correctness.” That misconception helped fuel Higgins' late entry into the field in 2016 and made him a member of Congress.
The truth is, the sheriff was going to fire him over pages and pages of emails about personal matters. Higgins was also accused of attacking an unarmed black man while he was an officer.
So, it's not just about hurt feelings. It is about the character of an individual who has been given too much power. Republicans placed Higgins on committees on civil rights, government accountability, and border security, fully aware of everything they just read about his background. Rep. Mike Johnson, also a Louisiana Republican, called Higgins a friend. Some “friend”; Higgins did not support Johnson to become Speaker of the House of Representatives during the first three rounds of voting. In fact, John A. Boehner, who left Congress more than 10 years ago and became a marijuana industry lobbyisthe received one vote for president before the Republicans finally elected Johnson. And that was only because Trump told MAGA Republicans that they were making the party look bad.
So to hold on to his job, Johnson has to pretend that Higgins is a good member of Congress, while Higgins pretends that he really wants to be there.
If only I had watched that TV show.
@LZGranderson
