SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP!

First, a few facts:

As Eugene Robertson put it, “At this point, the Republican Party really ought to change its name. It’s not a coherent political party anymore. To comply with truth-in-advertising standards, it should call itself the Republican Hot Mess. And yes, this is an election year, and the Hot Mess could take control of one or even both houses of Congress. At a time of overlapping crises at home and abroad, that is a gamble the nation should not take — and an outcome Democrats and independents must do everything in their power to prevent.”

The most endangered of Democrats are the slim majority in the House. While Mitch McConnell has said Senate Republicans will not produce a legislative agenda ahead of the midterm elections, since he’s smart enough to know how dangerous it is to let voters know exactly what they might be voting for, Kevin McCarthy is spending much of his time dealing with a loony-bin caucus that seems determined to embarrass the party leadership, while preaching party unity and proposing actual policies (none of them good).

Despite the fact that the Biden administration’s major activities have been: Passing an American Rescue Plan bill which created the most significant pro-family tax policy in a generation; getting America to 72 percent of the population fully vaccinated; passing an infrastructure law so bipartisan that 19 Republican senators voted for it; nominating a SCOTUS candidate so qualified that she has the highest approval rating of any nominee since John Roberts; managing American involvement in a major war so that America’s ally is winning, our alliance is unified, the war has not spilled over, and American troops have not needed to get directly involved; calling for a $32 billion increase in funding for law enforcement; and stewarding the economy to a place where job growth is on a historic upward trajectory and it was announced today that the unemployment rate is down to 3.6%, a level not seen in a generation...

Too many polls show enthusiasm among Democrats about the midterms substantially trails that of Republicans. This is particularly troubling given that even in the best political climate, Democrats struggle to draw their voters to the polls in midterm elections, thereby boosting the percentage of older, White and conservative voters, due to the belief of too many Democratic voters that they only need to vote for president every four years.

Yes, Biden’s ratings are crummy, inflation is high, and the dreams for voting rights reform and a transformative agenda crashed and burned in the Senate. Things are not helped by President Biden’s incessant talk about the proposals he did not achieve.

Historically, the party controlling the White House loses seats in the midterms. It is easier to rile up voters upset about what the party in power is doing - or failing to do - than to defend what is invariably an incomplete, imperfect record.

The situation is not helped by Biden’s continued belief that he can achieve the futile goals of “bipartisanship” and “lowering the temperature.” He fails to recognize that there can be no real bipartisanship with a party that promotes QAnon conspiracies, actively discourages covid vaccinations, systematically attacks access to voting, welcomes unhinged racists and continues to put forth the “big lie” that the 2020 election was stolen. The fact is, the opposition is burning down democratic institutions and fanning violence. This is not the time for Biden’s “kumbaya” group hug.

By remaining so studiously above the fray and refusing to identify Republicans as the threat to our democracy they are, the president has sapped his own base of energy while Republicans hve free rein to light up their voters.

So what can be done to narrow the enthusiasm gap?

Biden and the rest of the party must paint an accurate picture of what a Republican-led Congress would look like: Chaos. Vicious partisanship. Gridlock. Social reversal.

Given the usual inability of Democrats to toot their own horn successfully, this is a tall order. Even when we’re in a situation where Republicans like Ted Cruz have already said they’ll look for every opportunity to impeach Biden. Does anyone think 2024 Republican presidential contenders won’t leap at the chance to push for impeachment proceedings if the GOP takes the House this fall?

The party has also made clear they have no qualms about shutting down the government, defaulting on the debt and holding up key nominees for critical national security positions. If they take control and another Supreme Court justice retires or dies, no one can seriously believe McConnell, who denied Obama even a hearing on his Supreme Court pick would allow any consideration of Biden’s. These are things Republicans have already tried or promised to do.

Then there is what passes for “Republican policy.” Rick Scott, head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, has put forth a tax-the-poor plan and a scheme to repeal entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare. Ron Johnson has vowed to repeal Obamacare. This alone should be enough to get the Democratic base to wake up to the threat, but this will only happen if the party apparatus — from Biden on down — clearly articulates the policy disaster that would happen if Republicans take the majority.

Democrats cannot be shy about shining a bright light on the invasive, cruel and tyrannical measures Republicans are pushing at the state level, from turning loose vigilantes to seek bounties for turning in women seeking abortions, to threats to take transgender children away from parents who seek legitimate medical care, to the creation of a litigation machine to attack teachers trying to teach about civil rights or help children who are “different.” The GOP agenda that seeks to turn Americans against one another, create a hellish surveillance state and solidify America as a White, Christian nation.

What is so hard about pointing that out? Don’t fucking worry about what the over-educated, under-intelligent, otherwise-unemployables of the Mainstream Press Corpse thinks (them that think they do think, don’t).

It’s A-OK to scare the shit out of voters when they should be!!!

Granted, it is hard to get the herd of cats that are the Democrats onto the same page, but the problem begins in the Oval Office. Unless Biden drops the “Republicans aren’t so bad - we can work with them!” fantasy and uses the bully pulpit to pound away at the threat posed by Republicans, Democratic voters won’t see much urgency in turning out in November.

If Democrats want to minimize their losses, they first have to persuade the president to defend the soul of America. After all, that’s why he ran for president, right?

And in the meantime, suck it up, buttercup. Get to the polls if you have to crawl naked over a mile of broken glass and nails to get there. And drag two other Democrats with you.

Work between now and November, and vote then, as if your life depended on it.

BECAUSE IT FUCKING DOES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Vote D from dog-catcher to senator. And get two people you know to do the same. The worst Democrat is a thousand times better than the best Republican.

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