If your social media feeds have been filled with smiling tourists lately, you’re not alone. From Dutch visitors at Buc-ees to German soccer fans at Waffle House, these international guests are unwittingly starring in the latest GOP campaign narrative. House Speaker Mike Johnson believes these joyful encounters across the U.S. validate his party’s policies, citing them as evidence against the Democrats' "socialist takeover."

“Dutch travelers are in Buc-ees; German players took a midnight trip to the Waffle House. They're the greatest thing you've ever seen. English fans are roaming the Everglades. Japanese tourists marveling over free chips and salsa at a Mexican restaurant in Texas,” Johnson described with enthusiasm. These vignettes of international tourists enjoying the simple pleasures of American life seem to be, in Johnson’s view, a direct endorsement of Republican ideals.

However, Johnson glossed over a significant aspect of these viral sensations — the tourists' surprise at the contrast between their expectations of America and what they actually experienced. This narrative divergence was notably absent from his election-season rhetoric. Johnson leveraged the feel-good imagery to draw a stark contrast between his vision of America and that of the Democrats. "What a split screen we're seeing right now. We're triumphantly hosting the World Cup games all around the country, and we're seeing people from different countries come and get a little taste of America, a little taste of freedom, of our culture and our society. And they appreciate it so much more than these socialists running for Congress,” he asserted.

In a bold move, Johnson aligns the delight of these tourists with a broader political statement. “They're seeing for themselves the genius of America's system,” he claimed. According to him, their enjoyment stands as a testament to a society that “rewards risk takers and entrepreneurs and job creators and innovators.”

While the tourists themselves, like Freddy the German fan who scored a White House invite, might not be explicitly political, Johnson uses their awe as a stamp of approval for the GOP’s agenda. Whether these visitors are aware or not, they have become central figures in a uniquely American narrative, one where every plate of waffles might just serve as a side of ideology.