WhyConnecticutSen. Chris Murphy wants you to listen carefully to this viral country song
Aug. 16—The viral hit has inflamed critics on the left, many of whom have accused Anthony of playing into right-wing tropes about poverty and economic decline. So this week, Connecticut's Democratic U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy turned heads by encouraging people to tune in.
"I think progressives should listen to this. In part, [because] it's just a good tune," Murphy said in a post on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter. "But also [because] it shows the path of realignment. Anthony sings about the soullessness of work, s--- wages and the power of the elites. All problems the left has better solutions to than the right."
Murphy, who has supported higher taxes — particularly on the wealthiest Americans — as well as expanding government assistance programs such as food stamps, Medicaid and Social Security, might seem like an unlikely proponent for lyrics about how the government "ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds." (Not to mention the fact that he happens to represent one of the richest states in the county, situated very much north of the former Confederate capitol).
Indeed, the Democrat quickly followed his initial post with a second criticizing the "song's focus on taxes and food stamps as the primary enemy."
Murphy was hardly the only politician calling attention to the song. A chorus of far-right figures such as Kari Lake, Matt Walsh and U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, have heaped praise upon Anthony, casting him as a conservative troubadour. By Tuesday, "Rich Men North of Richmond," ranked No. 3 on the U.S Spotify chart.
The sudden popularity of Anthony's song has also driven a backlash from those who accuse the Farmville, Virginia-native of using racist dog whistles, or even being an industry plant. Some of that criticism has even spread to Murphy for his decision to amplify the music.
Anthony himself has said relatively little about his political views since becoming a viral sensation earlier this month.
In a video posted a day before his song first aired on a West Virginia radio station, the singer described himself as "pretty dead center down the aisle on politics," before going on to say that both parties "serve the same master, and that master is not someone of any good to the people of this country."
In the same video, however, Anthony says that "Rich Men North of Richmond" addresses several topics, including his concerns about human trafficking — a popular subject of Q-anon conspiracy theorists. Critics have noted that the song's line about "minors on an island somewhere" is an apparent reference to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Anthony did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on Tuesday. Murphy was traveling with family on Tuesday and not available to expand upon his tweets, according to his office.
On X, however, Murphy has continued to weigh in. On Tuesday, he responded to a Huffington Post writer who said the Democratic senator wanted to win over "right wing populists" rather than mock them,
"I mean, I've done my share of mocking and I'll probably continue. But yes, I think we should grow our [coalition] and win more votes in elections," Murphy said.
For his part, Anthony has reacted to the sudden attention to his lyrics in another video posted on Monday, in which he suggested that the emotional responses were the result of pent-up frustrations from listeners.
"Sometimes, it just takes the right song coming along to let those out," he said.
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