"Primary Them"

 I go back and forth on yesterday's cave in by some Senate Democrats. This was maybe their one chance for months to have a real impact on what Musk and Trump are doing. On the other hand, I can't help but think a shut down would have played into the hands of these nihilists trying to gut the Federal workforce. I just don't think there was a clear win here, no matter what they did. I do think a shut down would've been bad in ways we aren't fully imagining; still, I get that people want to see Democrats "do something.'

What I don't need to hear anymore of is "primary them."

As Dana Houle points out, quite a few of the Dems who voted yes on cloture are likely retiring anyway. He lists Peters and Shaheen, with Durbin likely to follow. Schumer, too. As both Durbin and Schumer are over 75, I think they deserve a primary anyways. We just lost Raul Grijalva to cancer at 77, which he knew he had when he ran for re-election in November. That's a critical vote from a safe D district that we've lost until there can be a special election in September.

The one performative exception is Fetterman, who answers the question "What if Kyrsten Sinema looked like Shrek?" Fetterman, however, comes from a state that voted for Trump twice, a state that kicked out Bob Casey this November. He's not quite Joe Manchin in his ability to win in a deeply Red state, but I'd be wary about enforcing some sort of immediate purity tests. I don't think the CR had a clear solution. 

Democrats currently have one electoral advantage: high socioeconomic and educational voters - people who vote in every election - are in their corner. They should do well in off-year and special elections. Where we are getting creamed is with Ariana Grande voters. People who follow politics in roughly the way I follow the NBA. I know when the season is; I know that there are a few players who are pretty good. Steph Curry still good? Someone named Embiid? Luka something? Dunno, the playoffs are in like month or so? I think?

Winning those voters is hard when you are the party of boring governmental competence. Some of those voters are, I think, waking up to the chaos that Trump and the wholly captured GOP are introducing into our nation. However, winning requires having the biggest tent possible. That's why I was never on board with hating Manchin. He was the difference between compromise legislation passing and nothing passing. It's also why I hated Joe Lieberman, because he was representing a solidly Democratic state and voting like a Republican on important issues.

So, please! I get the anger and frustration because people thought that there was a secret trick to use the CR against Trump. The trick was only if the House was unable to pass a "cleanish" CR. Turns out, to my surprise, they were. That was the ballgame. 

Democrats are almost entirely powerless at the national level. That sucks and is bad for the country. Turning our fire on each other is not the way to rectify that.