The Democrats are in denial.
The first indication is that their loss was about poor messaging; even though Hillary outspent Trump by huge amounts, and even though every outlet but Fox was in her camp, to an embarrassing degree. The best ad will not sell a bad product. It wasn’t the messaging, it was the message. (To some great degree it was also the messenger.)
The second indication is the vote to keep Nancy Pelosi as minority leader. She was largely responsible for the huge loss of the Democratic party in the House in 2010 and its consistent deterioration ever since. This vote, the upset that it was, was the continuation of a trend she put in place. This is like keeping your money manager that lost half of your money because of his experience.
The more that the media makes Elizabeth Warren and Nancy Pelosi the face of the party the more they lose. Making Keith Ellison the head of the party will only dig the grave deeper.
The left has made such a case for Trump being a disaster, that they have no back up plan if he is not.
The recent book Relic by William Howell and Terry Moe advocates a more powerful presidency. The authors propose a legislative fast track authority like the president already enjoys for trade deals. The president would initiate legislation and the Congress would have 60 days to vote it up or down with no amendments. I wonder if the authors maintain their enthusiasm for their idea with Trump in the White House and a compliant party in both Houses of Congress
Those who are so afraid of a Trump presidency should review the Constitution and its origins. The same progressive voters who have subverted constitutional restraints and pushed for more centralization and executive power, must now accept this power in the hands of the opposition. Parties in power seem to be very short sighted.
Identity politics ignores the successes in the area of civil rights. America is not more racist; the voters have largely moved on and this issue is just far less important now than the economy. Without identity the left must address their record.
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