How bad are things for the Democrat Party heading into the November mid-terms? Things are so bad that even the DCCC’s internal polling is now showing a coming wipe-out.
According to Politico, a Democrat recent survey of swing districts showed the GOP with between a four and 14 point advantage (supposedly depending on how Democrats message) on the generic ballot. To be frank, if that’s what the internal polling is showing, it’s much, much worse than that in reality.
Yet, what makes this all so hilarious is what the consultants are telling the Democrats to do in order to fix the hole they are currently in.
It wasn’t all bleak, though: The data showed that Democrats could mostly regain the ground lost to Republicans if they offered a strong rebuttal to the political hits. When faced with a “defund the police” attack, for instance, the presenters encouraged Democrats to reiterate their support for police. And on immigration, they said Democrats should deny support for “open borders or amnesty,” and talk about their efforts to keep the border safe.
If Democrats don’t answer Republican hits, the party operatives warned, the GOP’s lead on the generic ballot balloons to 14 points from 4 points — a dismal prediction for Democrats when the GOP only needs to win five seats to seize back the majority. But when voters heard a Democratic response to that hit, Republicans’ edge narrowed back down to 6 points, giving candidates more of a fighting chance, especially since those numbers don’t factor in Democrats going on the offensive.
Wait, you mean all Democrats have to do to stop the bleeding is to stop being Democrats? As our totally not senile president would say, “come on man.” That notion is farcical, and it’s akin to dumping a cup of water on a burning building. Does anyone really believe most Americans are going to be swayed by a Democrat using the phrase “make our borders safe?” Or by a Democrat pledging support for the police?
The problem with urging Democrats to “answer” the “culture war” attacks by Republicans is 1) they have no answer, and 2) Republicans are only responding to Democrat radicalism. It is not the GOP who started the battle over schools. Insane leftists pushing the sexualization and forever masking of children did that. The GOP did not start the war on police. The BLM movement, fully supported by the Democrat Party, did that.
The idea that Democrats could now turn on a dime and just change their “messaging” is laughable. Everyone knows exactly what they stand for at this point. There’s no un-baking that cake.
Besides, when you have Joe Biden consistently putting up these kinds of approval numbers, there is no path back to the majority for the Democrat Party.
Morning Consult was once one of the best polls in existence for Biden. He’s now at 39% in it. It’s hard to imagine how things can get worse for the president from here but never underestimate his ability to screw things up further.
As someone who has been on the other side of this equation, i.e. watching a coming wipeout of Republicans in a mid-term, there’s a reality that’s really hard for people to accept. Namely, there’s very little that can be done to stop a wave election once the wave has begun to build. Democrats can keep flailing, hiring consultants, and hoping for a miracle, but in the end, the red wave cometh. No amount of wishful thinking printed by Politico is going to change that.