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Conservative’s Story About 'How Republicans Are Born' Backfires Spectacularly

Grover Norquist gets schooled about taxes on Twitter.
Ed Mazza
By 

Deputy Editor, Trends, HuffPost

Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, shared a story on Twitter. It didn't go well for him.
Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, shared a story on Twitter. It didn't go well for him.
Jonathan Ernst / Reuters

Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist seemed to think he had the perfect example to explain his problem with taxes, and to illustrate ― as he put it ― “how Republicans are born.”

On Sunday, the head of the conservative Americans for Tax Reform wrote on Twitter:

How Republicans are born...
Daughter, 8, has been savings up to buy her first Guitar.
Found it for $35. She had 35 exact.
Then...sales tax

— Grover Norquist (@GroverNorquist) June 25, 2017

The post quickly went viral, but probably not for the reasons Norquist expected. Of the more than 4,500 comments, many explained exactly what the tax on that guitar would be used for.

Here are some examples:

Did you mention that you drove her to the guitar store on roads that were partly funded by sales taxes?

— John Schwartz (@jswatz) June 25, 2017

In a car which only has seat belts preventing you from being badly injured in the event of a crash due to taxpayer funded regulations?

— ☪️ Charles Gaba ✡️ (@charles_gaba) June 25, 2017

or those same taxes that pay for emergency services that will respond if you do get in an accident?

— Steve J (@SteveoCO21) June 25, 2017

And fix potholes etc that reduce the chance that we will have accidents.

— Holly Taggart (@holly_taggart) June 25, 2017

And using traffic lights which are installed by municipalities that greatly reduce the risk of death when driving?

— Shannon Copeland (@shinyshannon73) June 25, 2017

And using side walks that are paid by the city from tax payers dollars?

— Keith (@Political_5000) June 25, 2017

And police that protect her from being robbed of her cash.

— Liberal (@progressivehere) June 25, 2017

And firefighters and EMTs to provide emergency medical services that are paid for in part by sales tax.

— Yerba Dog (@YerbaDog) June 25, 2017

And were able to send this tweet due to government research and investment in the internet

— Ferdinand Chubb 🇧🇷 (@FerdinandChubb) June 25, 2017

How bout the taxes that fund public elementary school music programs that provide a necessary foundation for our guitar teachers?

— Peter Butler (@mrgrimm) June 26, 2017

And the library where she could go to research why we pay taxes?

— ❄️Texas Resistance❄️ (@janet79015) June 25, 2017

And that she doesn't have to go potty outdoors bc of extensive sewer system paid by tax dollars? 'Daddy where does poop go when u flush?"

— Rick (@RicknShira) June 26, 2017

Translation: "How Republicans are born...
Not doing their research and blaming strangers for their own ignorance."

— Pete Forester 🇺🇸 (@pete_forester) June 26, 2017

Here’s some of the reaction to the reaction:

This whole thread: pic.twitter.com/LtxmyeH0hr

— I Am the Cheese (@illuminarts1972) June 26, 2017

These replies are better than the last book I read.

— Seth Kaplan (@Seth_Kaplan) June 25, 2017

I love every single one of you on this thread. This is amazing. 👏👏👏👏👏

— Lauren Segars (@lauren_segars) June 25, 2017

pic.twitter.com/kgLf79uHV0

— R.P. McMurphy (@goodbyemrburton) June 25, 2017

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