The Republican Party is in turmoil today after naming deceased silent-film-icon Lon Chaney as the new chair of the House Republican Conference. Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy praised the choice, claiming that Chaney — who starred in Phantom of the Opera in 1925 — was one of the finest actors in the history of American cinema. As he put it, “death can never extinguish greatness. We welcome the opportunity to work with whatever remains in Mr. Chaney’s casket to move our country forward.”
Many Republicans are responding with outrage. Illinois Representative Adam Kinzinger notes that “installing yet another white male into a leadership position in the GOP sends exactly the wrong message to those voters of color we hope to attract to the Republican cause. Why couldn’t we have selected Marian Anderson or Althea Gibson? They’re just as dead as Chaney. We desperately need to bring our party into the 20th century.”