Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) did something gutsy, based on the wild criteria set by the political class: she endorsed a Republican in the U.S. Senate race. The Democrats, media, and the lefty influencer bubble treated her as if she had declared her allegiance to the Nazi Party. Why were they so angry? I thought Democrat Rep. Abdul El-Sayed (MI-?, Stevens’ primary rival, had this race sewn up. Who cares, some replied, well, you spent all day Sunday foaming at the mouth, fellas. Maybe the stories about Jewish Democrats and black voters voting for Republican Mike Rogers are true. Maybe this will give Stevens’ base the green light to split tickets. And if that’s the case, then it’s all the Democrats’ fault.
Over 730,000 Michiganders voted for Stevens. If five percent voted for Rogers, that could decide the race. It’s not a small thing, and everyone knows it. Stevens wanted El-Sayed to denounce an ad from a PAC supporting him, which depicted a couple unable to buy eggs and bananas because Jewish people existed. That’s the theme, and it was branded antisemitic by everyone, even the most ardent Democrats. The weak counterpoint is that it never aired in Michigan — it went viral. People saw it, including those in Michigan. Former Obama official Van Jones denounced it, prompting some nasty replies from the far left.
That’s it. All El-Sayed had to do was denounce antisemitism, and Stevens maybe would’ve appeared with him at this campaign event hosted by Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), and the image of unity would’ve smoothed over Stevens’ fiancé, Jason Turkish, announcing his support for Rogers.
It underscores that Democrats truly are not seeing the forest for the trees. If they’re a notch or two less nuts, don’t talk about Trump 24/7, focus on job creation, and don't come off as snobby a**holes, they can take a good swath of the Trump base — 40 percent of which identifies as economically progressive. It’s the small things that Democrats blessedly miss, and it’ll likely hurl them toward total obscurity once the 2030 census kicks in.
Nate Silver noted he isn’t sure whether Stevens’ endorsement will affect the race this late, though he added that if we'd known the endgame would develop into something like this, it would’ve been better to force Gary Peters to run for another term.
Whatever the case, Stevens isn’t a moron. This decision wasn’t spurred by her fiancé. Instead of being introspective, like maybe a candidate like El-Sayed, who has a ton of baggage, wasn’t the best choice, the Democrats once again decide to attack this woman for making an independent choice. Stevens didn’t want to endorse antisemitism. Everyone else felt differently, and that’s another story altogether.
Bravo, Ms. Stevens. Also, I have no clue why everyone thinks this woman set her career on fire. The same people who thought Trump was finished after 2020 are saying this, and they’re always wrong.
Stevens wins for one of the gutsiest moves this cycle. She went her own way, and her party has put a hit on her.
