There were small victories, but the war for a more prosperous society will be a long hard fought battle.
No there wasn’t a red tsunami, wave, or even puddle. In fact, you could argue that for all the hype about how well Republicans would do in the 2022 midterms, it was an absolute disaster. The house of representatives was secured by a narrow margin, but Florida and Ohio solidified themselves as deep red states, while New Mexico is bluer than ever. Despite record inflation, high crime and soaring energy costs, millions of Americans were more concerned with being able to have an abortion beyond a sensible period of time, and that dependency on government is still the path to prosperity.
You can guarantee that a campaign slogan of “free” will always beat the one that states “accountability”. And though it was democratic policies that killed small businesses but allowed billionaires to thrive in 2020, it was still the message needed to woo voters under 30. Republican politicians have been shot, received cyanide in the mail, and conservative Supreme Court Justices have been the target of assassinations, yet the idea of right wing extremism still resonated with many voters. Hypocrisy of both liberal media and democrats has been on full display for the past two and a half years, yet unshakeable support for them continues to plague our country. Idealism is now the norm for many, while pragmatic thinking is becoming less of a standard in today’s America.
Now that a federal appeals court has blocked student loan forgiveness, the Democratic Party will have to look at other ways to bribe voters. The Republican strategy of encouraging supporters to show up on Election Day is noble, but mail in and early voting are here to stay, and it’s time for them to accept this reality. With billions of dollars at their disposal and the vast majority of media cheerleading for the Democratic Party, Republicans also need to increase their base at the grassroots level. Major metropolitan cities such as Philadelphia and Los Angeles may look like third world societies, but Democrats are entrenched deep enough in them that it will be difficult to win without taking away at least some of the votes in those areas.
I was cautiously optimistic about conservative’s chances to control the majority of the Senate, House and Governorships, but despite the red wave not materializing as hoped, there is some bright spots on the horizon. This is a marathon, not a sprint, and Republicans can take pride in the fact that 5 million more votes were cast for their candidates than for Democrats. Winning small battles will hopefully win the war.
Until next time.
JPN