Anti-Biden furor on display at ‘America First Rally’ featuring U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in Plainfield

Joyce Suleski of Woodstock doesn’t normally throw around curse words.

“I was raised Catholic,’' the 58-year-old insurance worker from Woodstock said. “I never use the F-bomb or the middle finger.’'

But at Saturday’s “America First Rally“ with U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) in Plainfield, Suleski proudly donned a shirt emblazoned with the initials FJB, a vulgar reference to President Joe Biden.

“I never liked his politics,” Suleski said, “and I hate what he’s doing to this country. That’s what FJB means.”

Suleski wasn’t the only one at the rally using expletives to express her dislike of the president and his policies. The crowd periodically erupted in chants of “F--- Joe Biden.” Vendors sold T-shirts, bumper stickers, flags and baseball caps adorned with the phrase.

“This is my feeling and there’s still freedom of speech,’’ said Norm Evans, 47, of Killingly. He brought a homemade banner that read “F##CK Biden,” along with his yellow “Don’t Tread of Me” flag to the rally.

Greene, a first-term congresswoman from Georgia, is a flamboyant political figure who has become the object of ridicule for Democrats and some of her fellow Republicans. She was stripped of her committee assignments because she supported the conspiracy theory that school shootings in Sandy Hook and Parkland, Florida, were staged events to promote gun control. She once suggested on social media that space lasers connected to the Rothschild banking firm may have caused wildfires in California.

But her steadfast support of former President Donald Trump and her stance against vaccination and mask requirements have made her a hero to many at the rally. Her appearance in Connecticut, which also included a $150-a-person meet-and-greet fundraiser and dinner, was sponsored by the Quinebaug Citizens Alliance and hosted by K&H Construction Company.

Greene acknowledged irony of her visit to Connecticut, a state that went strongly for Biden in 2020.

“They say terrible things about Connecticut,’' she told the crowd, which organizers put at 3,000. “They say its filled with Democrats.”

But Greene’s visit to eastern Connecticut, a part of the state that has trended toward Republicans in recent election cycles, shows the durability of the Trump brand. Trump won Plainfield by about 58% in 2020.

Scott Jodoin, a Trump supporter from Griswold, deeply distrusts Democrats and believes the country has slid downward since Biden took over.

“They tried to defund the police, now they’re threatening to get rid of police, fire, soldiers for not getting vaccinated,’' said Jodoin, who wore a “F##ck The Mask” T-shirt. “At the same time, the borders are wide open ... terrorists are coming in. They’re taking away our freedoms little by little.”

Some expressed concern about the profane nature of the anti-Biden message. Ben Hull of Lisbon said he’s worried the expletives detract from the “pro-America, pro-life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness message” of the rally. “We should keep the message clean and family friendly,’' he said.

But Paul Doherty, 61, of Killingly, said he has no problem with the vulgar language. “We’re circling the toilet and we’re worried about the F-word?” he said. “We have a lot worse problems.”

Anger was the dominant mood of many at the event. They offered up a list of grievances: COVID-19 shutdowns, public schools that teach about America’s history of racism, gun control, transgender civil rights and Hunter Biden’s laptop among them.

As for Biden? “I think he’s a communist,’' said John McMechen, a Navy veteran from Griswold who wore a T-shirt that read, “We the People are pissed.”

In addition the expletive-laced chant, the Trump faithful also shouted “Let’s Go, Brandon,’' a phrase that has caught fire as a euphemism for the more vulgar expression. It attained meme status after the crowd at Alabama’s Talladega Superspeedway began chanting “F--- Joe Biden” while a reporter was interviewing NASCAR driver Brandon Brown live on air. “You can hear the chants from the crowd, ‘Let’s go Brandon!’” the reporter said, promoting Trump supporters invoke the phrase at rallies and protests.

Greene told the rally audience in Plainfield that she has hung “Let’s Go Brandon!” sign outside her office — and pledged to keep it there.

She concluded her speech with a pep talk to the Connecticut conservatives who stood cheering before her.

“This is the way you save your country,” she said. “You bring a bunch of great people together, people that love America, people that believe in our freedoms, that believe in our Constitution and are going to stand firm against the tyranny we’re facing right now.”

The crowd went wild.