Democrats have two options. Either they can state their supposedly fervent belief that 'stop-the-steal' election conspiracy enthusiasts represent a genuine threat to the republic ('democracy under attack,' etc). Or they can boost precisely those types of people in GOP primary races as a tactical decision, based on the theory that they'd be easier to defeat in the general election. What Democrats cannot do, however, is both, then demand that people take them seriously on the first front. Yet that is exactly what the Democratic Party has been doing over the last few months -- not as a one-off, mind you, but as a full-blown strategy. It's worth noting that this breathtaking cynicism has not come from outside lefty groups, thus giving official Democratdom some semblance of strained but plausible deniability; no, the Democratic Party itself has made this overt choice.
They've demanded that Republicans place "country over party" by opposing Trump's 2020 election lies, insisting that standing up to the former president, in defense of the truth and constitution, is a matter of civic necessity and patriotism. They've done so while luxuriating in high dudgeon, positively oozing self-righteousness. And then they've set about spending millions of dollars to help boost hardcore election deniers in a slew of GOP primaries all across the country, with the obvious intent of assailing these people as extremist wackos in the fall. If the stakes were lower, this sort of meddling would be textbook politics. Candidates and parties intentionally elevate certain opponents all the time. But the Democrats tell us these are not normal times. This is different. It's is about the very survival of our institutions and form of government. They've said so, over and over again.
Let's set aside the Left's relentless war on norms and institutions that they perceive as standing in the way of their grip on power, which they treat as a birthright. Let's also ignore, for the moment, their own penchant for election trutherism. For the purposes of this discussion, let's take their alleged principles and January 6th-related rhetoric at face value. If they believed it -- really, truly, in their bones -- they'd reject out of hand the sorts of games in which they're currently engaged. Too risky, playing with fire, etc. This cycle is expected to be ugly for the ruling party, for all the glaring reasons, so for them to actively help people they see as reckless, detached-from-reality cranks become the opposition party's nominees ought to be be unthinkable under these circumstances. In reality, it's been not just thinkable, but a bona fide strategy. They've enthusiastically embraced it, pouring millions of dollars into the effort. Senate Democrats have gone this route, as has the Democratic Governors Association, both with mixed results thus far.
But it's the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that may have stooped the lowest. They're dropping cash to hype a Trump-backed primary challenger against freshman Rep. Peter Meijer, a young veteran and conservative who cast a number of tough votes hailed by Democrats as the embodiment of 'country over party' courage. Meijer's reward from those same Democrats? A shiv, in the form of DCCC "attack ads" being run "against" his primary opponent, blatantly designed to help said opponent defeat Meijer:
Republicans view this primary as neck-and-neck; John Gibbs (the Trump pick) would have an edge... if he had any money to spend on air. He's not spent a penny for ads.
— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) July 25, 2022
The DCCC, then, looks like it's going in for the kill shot. Against one of the biggest anti-Trump Rs.
another important bit of context: This is one of the most Dem districts that Rs hold now... redrawn to favor them.
— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) July 25, 2022
Meijer would probably have a slight edge because of his independence; with Gibbs, Dems would be favorites to pick up the Biden-friendly Grand Rapids seat.
Here's the spot itself. They barely even bother to disguise it as a negative ad. Its clear purpose is to push Trump fans into the camp of Democrats' preferred general election opponent:
This isn't the first time party-over-country Democrats have explicitly and deliberately used anti-Trump votes by Republicans -- votes they loudly demanded, ostensibly for the good of the nation -- as an electoral cudgel against Republicans who did "the right thing." Some conservatives may shrug and snark that getting stabbed in the back is what these members deserve, for being so naive as to believe the Left ever operates in good faith. But the other side's bad faith is not a sound reason to do the wrong thing. Doing what one believes is right, even or especially when it's difficult or risky, is the veritable definition of integrity and character. Nevertheless, even though it's not entirely shocking to see the Democrats employing these mind-blowingly sleazy tactics that thoroughly expose what frauds they are, it's still disgraceful and appalling to watch. "It’s one of the most cynically repulsive things I’ve seen since since I started writing about elections," Allahpundit seethed yesterday, and it's hard to disagree.
Granted, it may "work." Democrats might mitigate their midterm losses by teeing up then defeating toxic Republicans in races that more "normal" opponents would have won. After all, it's ultimately GOP voters who have to decide whether to give Democrats what they want by showing honorable figures like Meijer the door. These voters have agency. On the other hand, the scheme could backfire, with any number of "unelectable" people actually winning high office, as Democrats get swept away by the rip tide of concurrent crises, inflation, recession, and a spectacularly unpopular president. Perhaps we'll see a sprinkling of both. But by committing to this deeply irresponsible strategy, the Democratic Party establishment is handing Americans a big, fat permission slip to never trust their motives again. Their tedious "country over party" exhortations are emptier than ever -- and will be, more than ever before, instantly dismissed. And Democrats deserve it. They're advertising their view that politics is nothing more than a zero-sum, blood-sport brawl over sheer power, and they'll have zero moral high ground to preen or posture to the contrary.
Many righties, gripped by a similarly cynical view, have long assumed leftists would stop at nothing to achieve power, and have therefore oriented their own political compass accordingly. Democrats seem to be working hard to justify that view, effectively guaranteeing that ends-justify-the-means politics will become the new, destructive, dysfunctional norm. Hope the possibility of slightly downscaling your wave year losses is worth it, guys.