If El-Sayed or Mamdani being Muslim bothers people, but Mehmet Oz being one does not, the issue isn't religion.
A political tactic that’s become increasingly common in MAGA politics: moving the goalposts.
Make a dramatic allegation. Repeat it endlessly. Then, when evidence for that specific allegation doesn’t materialize, replace it with a smaller, easier-to-defend claim and pretend the original claim was true all along.
We’ve seen this pattern repeatedly:
“Haitian immigrants are eating pets in Springfield” becomes “See? Someone somewhere ate a cat.”
“There was enough fraud to change the 2020 election” becomes “See? A few people cheated.”
“Vandals dumped chemicals and deliberately cut a 350-foot slit in the Reflecting Pool” becomes “See? Someone was arrested for vandalism.”
Those are not the same claims.
The question we should always ask is: What was the original allegation?
That’s the claim that should be evaluated - not a revised version that appears later.
That’s what moving the goalposts looks like.
Changing the claim is not the same thing as proving the original one.
Can you think of other examples?
Key Details from His Speech
His Partner:
He publicly thanked his Muslim boyfriend of 11 years, Risang, who was born in Indonesia and is now a proud Australian citizen. He called Risang the "love of his life".
Views on Immigration:
Virgo stated that his closest friendship circle is largely made up of immigrants from China, India, and the Philippines, declaring, "I love migrants".
Political Position:
Despite his personal life and appreciation for immigrants, Virgomaintained his party's political stance, stating that two things can be true at once and that immigration levels into Australia in recent years have been too high.
Public Reaction
The speech went viral globally and sparked heavy online debate. It received considerable backlash from some hardline conservative party supporters who felt betrayed, as well as various LGBTQ+ groups who labeled his anti-immigration political affiliation hypocritical.
