The New York Times has a whole article devoted to the “terrible dilemma” Democratic Senators running for re-election in red states are facing because of the Kennedy vacancy. Do they risk alienating their red state constituents or the dedicated members of their party? The answer should be a no brainer, but it is worth reading just to see how out of touch the mainstream media and far too many Democratic consultants are with the fundamentals of the Trump era.
It’s a misreading if Electoral Politics 101. Red state voters who prioritize putting conservative judges on the Supreme Court are far less likely to crossover to vote for centrist Democrats in the first place since they are likelier to be straight ticket Republicans already. The voters likeliest to crossover and ticket split are the ones least likely to care about a partisan issue like the Supreme Court. The only voters these Senators absolutely cannot afford to lose in a midterm year are partisan Democrats highly motivated to stop the President on this issue who will absolutely stay home if they vote the wrong way.
Did we see a similar article about Scott Brown clutching his pearls over Obama nominees? I certainly do not remember them. Every midterm Democrats run away from their party and every midterm their core base is blamed for not showing up. Maybe there is a causation here? Inspiring your base to turnout is campaigning 101, and yet the Times and far too many leaders in the party pretend it isn’t. No wonder the repugnant likes of Karl Rove and now Donald Trump consistently outmaneuver us. Make no mistake, a vote for this nominee is a vote to overturn Roe. Even Joe Lieberman was enough of a Democrat to vote against Bush era nominees. Todays Red State centrist Democrats should follow that lead.
Thank you! Truman said if voters have to choose between a Republican and a Republican they will vote for the Republican every time. Showing some leadership and making the argument just shouldn’t be that hard in this instance. Red state voters at least claim not to like government meddling in their affairs so this can easily be turned into an argument to not let government make this most personal of decisions for you. Plus this isn’t just about Roe by a long shot. A Trump-nominated Justice is also likely to exacerbate the economic woes of his base.