Rescue the Republic didn’t meet expectations

This Sunday, steps away from the Washington Monument, a ragtag group of disgruntled, self-described classical liberals, seed oils disrespecters, public intellectuals and former Democrats assembled for the Rescue the Republic rally. 

The event was spearheaded by Dr. Bret Weinstein, a “canceled ” evolutionary biology professor turned podcaster. In the days leading to the event, he imagined it as a civilizational moment — “This will be ‘an event’ in the same way that Woodstock was ‘a music festival.’ I truly believe that.”

Sadly for Weinstein, the event fell short of a revolutionary event, with most of the crowd concentrating next to the stage, leaving lots of space in the back. 

Part of it might’ve been because conserva-rapper Zuby (no disrespect) is no Jimi Hendrix, but the fact that the audience included a boomer who handed me an “Autism Action Network” business card didn’t help. 

To be fair, however, the cloudy weather and the fact that the event happened in the overwhelmingly pro-Democrat capital didn’t help. Even though it was no Woodstock, there was something worthwhile happening there. Speaking from a “MAHA” — Make America Healthy Again — podium, the speakers included former Democratic figures Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard, Colonel Douglas MacGregor, vaccine skeptic Dr. Robert Malone, and a paired-up Dr. Jordan Peterson and English comedian Russell Brand.

It was not that reminiscent of a MAGA rally, and while some attendees were very MAGA indeed, there were plenty of unorthodox attendees. The role this faction of our politics — independent-minded, environmentalist, health-obsessed, anti-imperialists — may play this November, and beyond, should be analyzed more than it’s mocked. 

Of the people there, one of the most controversial figures was Dr. Robert Malone, the rogue biochemist who became a hero to the anti-Covid-vax movement — and Enemy No. 1 to others. The Spectator asked him about whether he believed that electoral politics aside, people like him had a future in a Trump administration?

“I have friends that are quite close to Mr. Trump, that were participants in the last administration,” Dr. Malone said. “Remember that Mr. Trump, like any politician, is not in a position where he is interested in focusing on past failures and setbacks. So, it’s no surprise that he still is endorsing the work that was done under his administration, with Operation Warpspeed and the deployment of the vaccines.

“Is [the dialogue] shifting within the campaign? All we can say is that there is some tangible evidence in having Tulsi [Gabbard] and Bobby [Kennedy] on the transition team, suggesting that there is a more diverse range of voices participating in the planning for a new Trump administration.” Dr. Malone added, “I don’t seek any positions within his administration, but if I’m asked to serve my country, I would be happy to serve [it].”

While talking to Dr. Malone was interesting, The Spectator was even more excited to meet comedian Lionel McGloin, known to many as @nocapongodfr. For those unfamiliar with his craft, McGloin takes the man on the street videos to another level — crashing catwalks and protests, as well as smooching “MAGA moms.” 

Throughout the event, The Spectator saw McGloin talk to many MAGA moms (no smooches spotted, however), as well as with podcast host Tim Pool, Peterson and Brand. The content he’d gathered was sure to make for another funny vid. But then, the unexpected happened.

McGloin approached Dr. Weinstein and jovially asked him whether “his brother Harvey Weinstein was innocent.” Instead of laughing it off, clarifying that there is no relation, Weinstein replied: “You want to conflate me with fucking Harvey Weinstein,” fumingly walking away. Security then took McGloin’s camera.

While the cameras were eventually returned, as McGloin told The Spectator, “the SD cards were destroyed” with the police telling him that they are “awaiting data recovery.” For McGloin that meant a wasted day, but for the world it meant losing interviews on “semen retention” with Dr. Peterson and Russell Brand. “It’s funny because the whole event was outfitting democracy with a little humor, but clearly [Weinstein] can’t take a joke.”

In an event that hosted some of the most public supporters of free expression, McGloin is right to ask: “How can we ‘rescue our republic’ without free speech?” Weinstein might’ve had a bad day, but nothing justifies what happened to McGloin. He — or we, actually — should get an apology.