Stephen Lynch’s Candidacy Now Just One, Long Austin Powers Metaphor
Credit: Provided by Brian Mahar of TigerComm
Stephen Lynch recently showed off his timely movie reference skills by calling billionaire hedge funder and environmental activist Tom Steyer “Dr. Evil,” and Steyer’s public relations team seems only too happy to play the “Which Austin Powers character are you” game, photoshopped infographics and all!
Yeah, we’re a bit confused as to how we got here as well.
But let’s attempt to retrace our path: Steyer pledged to spend millions defeating Lynch in his primary race against Ed Markey because of Lynch’s support for the Keystone XL oil pipeline. You’ve likely noticed Steyer-funded airplanes with banners attacking Lynch flying through the skies of Boston. Flying an oil-fueled airplane is probably not the most energy-efficient method of political attack, but then Dr. Evil never did understand irony, and hey, it’s better than a rocket ship that looks like a … Roger, what was I just talking about? Oh right, anyway…
When asked about the campaign recently, Lynch told a WGBH reporter, “It’s hilarious. It is like an Austin Powers movie. This guy is Dr. Evil. He’s got a billion dollars and he’s coming after me, I don’t know why.”
Steyer’s PR people point out in a press release that Lynch likely does know why—though his current official position is that he’s awaiting an environmental impact report on the project, he’s expressed support for the Keystone XL pipeline in the past. The team even drew up a nifty Austin Powers-themed infographic (partially pictured above) to use Lynch’s words against him. Says a Steyer spokesman in an e-mail, “Since Congressman Lynch is such an Austin Powers fan, we’re posing the question: Is he really the International Man of Mystery because he is backpedaling on his support of the Keystone pipeline?”
Yes, the fight for U.S. Senate in 2013 has now just descended into a lengthy metaphor drawn from a movie that came out in 1997. We’re not really sure what to make of all this either.
