It almost sounds quaint. As we approach the midterms, which are still more than ten months away, mainstream media pollsters have begun asking those same tired questions they’ve asked for years, as if nothing in America has changed. Blinders securely in place, let’s ignore that elephant in the room and proceed quickly as we whistle past the graveyard. The pollsters report we are a pessimistic bunch, we’re divided, and the country is headed in the wrong direction.
And, if pollsters are correct, Republicans will take over Congress in 2023 and fix this mess (right). Here’s an example from NBC News on their latest midterm polling:
While Democrats hold a narrow 1-point lead in congressional preference, Republicans enjoy a double-digit enthusiasm advantage, with 61 percent of Republicans saying they are very interested in the upcoming midterms — registering their interest either as a 9 or 10 on a 10-point scale.
That’s compared with 47 percent of Democrats who have the same high level of interest.
In previous midterm cycles — whether 2006, 2010, 2014 or 2018 — the party that held a double-digit advantage in enthusiasm (or close to it) ended up making substantial gains, our pollsters say.
Ah, the enthusiasm gap. It’s certainly not news that the party holding the White House often loses seats in the midterm election. But does any of that really matter anymore? As we now know, democracy was almost tossed off a cliff in 2021. A signed memo here, a different attorney general there and boom, we have a full blown coup d’etat. Not to mention, 147 members of Congress voted against certifying Joe Biden’s win. Our country is in crisis. The far-right of the GOP, led by Donald Trump, has a stranglehold on the party. Could Jim Jordan be speaker in 2023? Sure! How about a leadership role for Marjorie Taylor Greene! Absolutely.
And what about the Select Committee investigating January 6th, 2021? Come 2023, they should be tossed in jail, according to former speaker Newt Gingrich.
Think this is nuts? Here’s a GOP candidate for the House who agrees with Newt.
Rick Wilson, a founder of the Lincoln Project and a former Republican tweeted a must-read thread.
We’ve been warning you all along that this election isn’t about BBB or prescription drugs or guns or climate or anything else in the policy domain. It’s about the emergent authoritarian state shambling its way toward the end of small-d democratic politics.
On the first day of the new GOP’s reign, the impeachment of Joe Biden begins. The endless Benghazi 2.0 investigations begin. Expect weeks to TV on Hunter Biden’s laptop. Expect endless hearings on the BLM and the imaginary Antifa threat. You know why.
Here’s the thread:
But sure, let’s talk about the “enthusiasm gap.” As for the continuing threat to democracy, NBC News did ask the question. Here it is, posted below. It was number 27, the very last question in the poll. And, thankfully, Americans still believe there is a threat.
