The Republican Party’s Unrequited Love of Rock Music

The cost of admission to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Cleveland, has been waived this week, presumably so Republican National Convention-goers can freely visit the “Louder Than Words: Rock, Power, and Politics” exhibit presently occupying its upper floors. This seems like a good idea. For decades, Republican campaigns have deeply misunderstood, often in hilarious ways, the most formative and essential ideologies of rock music, as evidenced by their endless dodging of cease-and-desist orders from musicians who don’t want their rebel yells associated, even temporarily, with conservative agendas.