The GOP Is Ruining 'The Princess Bride'

It's not uncommon for presidential candidates to quote from popular culture occasionally (remember when Herman Cain quoted the Pokemon movie?), but something of an obsession is currently brewing in the Republican field. Throughout his campaign, Ted Cruz has frequently quoted his favorite movie, The Princess Bride, which then prompted opponent Lindsey Graham to deliver a snappy retort also using a quote from the movie. But the best response to this whole quotathon came from a Democrat. In a blog post published Wednesday, Hillary Clinton's campaign called out Republicans for quoting The Princess Bride. The article, titled "Inconceivable! Are Republicans Stealing Policy Ideas From The Princess Bride," details "How the GOP is twisting your favorite childhood movie — and what we can do to stop them."

In recent months, party favorite Cruz has been pulling out the stops to wow crowds at his campaign events. It's becoming abundantly clear that his go-to shtick is quoting and acting out scenes from The Princess Bride, which he says is his favorite movie. Say what you will about the staunch conservative, but he does do a pretty mean Billy Crystal impression (although actor Mandy Patinkin, who plays Inigo Montoya in the movie, has publicly condemned the candidate's shenanigans).

Apparently taking advantage of this quirk, Graham tried to beat Cruz at his own game during the undercard debate on Tuesday, saying:

Ted, getting in bed with Iran and Russia to save Assad is inconceivable! Princess Buttercup would not like this.

"Inconceivable!" is a frequent exclamation that Vizzini (played by Wallace Shawn) makes, and Princess Buttercup is the titular character (played by Robin Wright).

The Clinton site's article reveals the GOP's irritating appropriation of the movie, but then outlines the many ways in which their policies could actually be inspired by misinterpretations of the beloved movie. The emphasis there is on "misinterpretations," because in reality, Republicans absolutely do not deserve to quote the movie.

Why? Because the main message of The Princess Bride is that true love can overcome death. This is entirely contradictory to much of the GOP's message for many reasons. This is a party that has denied same-sex couples the right to marry, that has dismissed the glaring racial and civil rights issues in this country that tear communities apart. And it's the same party that, very recently, backed Donald Trump's proposal to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S., supporting the notion that broad discrimination against all Muslims is the answer to confronting a small, perverted faction of Islam. That's exactly what terrorist organizations like ISIS wants, playing right into their reign of death and violence.

In other words, the Republican message totally contradicts "love can overcome death." It's not a message of love at all. In fact, whether or not they are aware, the GOP's message is closer to "hate will lead to death."