A spokeswoman for Rep. Gary Peters (D-MI) and assorted Democrats lit into Michigan GOP Senate candidate Terri Lynn Land on Twitter Tuesday for mentioning she is a mother in a radio interview.
In one representative example, Sam Inglot of far-left group Progress Michigan created a “Terri Lynn Land drinking game” that calls on participants listening to the program to “Drink when she says ‘I’m a mom’ or ‘The President needs to lead.'”
“How many times are you going to mention that you’re a mom?” Hugh Madden, another Progress Michigan activist, added in a tweet.
During her answers to two questions in an hour long interview on Michigan Public Radio where she took questions from callers statewide, Land noted how “I’m a mom” and how she has two kids. The first time she did it was in the context of how she was worried about “the safety and security of our country.”
The second time she mentioned her family, nearly five minutes later, was in an entirely different but parallel context: whether the United States should send young people, like her son, off as ground troops to fight ISIS.
“To put combat troops on the ground there is a very serious decision,” Land said. She specifically said that since President Obama hasn’t stepped up to lead on ISIS, she wouldn’t support sending American troops to fight at this time–but would consider it if there’s a coherent plan that comes together in the future and is presented by Obama or some future president.
“You really have to have all the parts there–the plan–to find out exactly what the president plans on doing and he’s failed,” she said. “He has not done that. So until he does that, I think it’s very imperative that he listens to his military advisers and comes up with a clear and concise long term plan for the safety and security of our great country.”
A few other times throughout the radio appearance, Land mentioned how she’s a mom and has kids, like when she talked about the national debt; the Ebola crisis; how she planned to reduce carbon emissions in the U.S. and worldwide; when a caller asked about “family planning” and contraception; and when a caller asked about dental health plans as part of the national healthcare debate–all completely legitimate topics where candidates for public office and lawmakers often bring up the fact that they have children and families.
Democrats on Twitter quickly began mocking Land.
“Ding, ding! Round 1 is over. Things we know from @TerriLLand: She is a mom and the president needs to lead. Dodged most questions,” the group Progress Michigan tweeted when the program headed into its first break.
Jesse Lehrich, the press secretary for American Bridge–a leftist media tracking organization founded by pro-Hillary Clinton activist David Brock–joined in on the attack via a tweet, saying: “lol children exist in other countries too, does that make ‘I’m a mom’ an appropriate answer for foreign policy strategy?”
The Michigan Democratic Party’s Rob Curis–an activist who has promoted events for the Party on his Twitter page, inviting Michiganders to them–tweeted at Land: “Good question: ‘what can we do to reduce pollution?’ @TerriLLand’s answer: ‘I’m a mom, I have two kids.'”
Land’s actual answer to the question was 300 words and included a relatively in-depth policy discussion; her reference to her kids was a brief aside alluding to why she cares about pollution.
“So things I learned about Terri Lynn Land: She is a mom and has two kids. She also likes pretending she didn’t say things before,” Michigan State University College Democrats’ president Brianna Shamsuddoha tweeted.
“Hey, being a mom is not a qualification to be a U.S. Senator. Do you have anything besides talking points?” Kevin Shopshire, a liberal who says he is a “current Legislative Staffer” in the Michigan state Senate and a “Democratic Party Activist,” tweeted.
“Bland’s talking point is ‘leading from behind,” Shopshire added. “She’s all talking points. I know she’s a mom because she told us twice.”
Land’s campaign pushed back.
“Being a mother is a bad thing acd [according] to dems,” Land’s campaign spokeswoman Heather Swift tweeted as Democrats and liberal activists throughout the state attacked Land for referencing her motherhood during a recent live telecast editorial board interview.
Haley Morris, Peters’ campaign’s communication director, fired back at Swift’s tweet: “Nope. But its an odd pivot when not talking about how to address ISIS.”
Reporters even used the liberal attack line on Land.
“I imagine a drinking game is emerging at the @ProgressMich offices every time a certain someone says she is a mom,” Chris Gautz, a reporter for Crain’s Detroit Business, tweeted.
“In case you were wondering, @TerriLLand mentioned she’s a mom with kids six times during the #MICalling show,” Chad Livengood, a reporter for the Detroit News, tweeted.
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