Rising tide lifting Republicans

Are Republicans finally getting the message? Polls (notoriously inaccurate, as Hillary Clinton, MSNBC and The Young Turks can attest) that earlier showed Democrats taking the House — and possibly even the Senate — are now wobbling with less certainty. Some leftward-leaning pundits are even tacitly admitting that momentum seems to be moving in the Republicans’ direction. Why could this be? Perhaps it is because Republican national leadership is finally wising up and doing what conservative voters have been telling it to do for years: Stand up for your position. Speak directly to the voters — and listen to them. Reach out to voters who everyone tells you you’ll never win over. Realize that the press will not give you fair coverage. Admit that Democrats don’t really want bipartisanship, nor will they play by the rules they’ll hold you to. The 2016 election blew a hole a mile wide in what’s considered “conventional wisdom,” so predictions might seem foolhardy. But it’s worth pointing out some similarities between what happened in 2016 and what’s happening now: First, the left is doubling down on tactics that lost voters in 2016. Americans are appalled by the insults, threats and riots. Gardenvariety Democratic voters are believers in due process and the rule of law. Second, President Trump is canvassing for Republicans and drawing record crowds — despite a mainstream press that keeps telling us how “unpopular” he is. The press said the same thing in 2016 (laughing, as I recall). In 2016, I remarked that Trump was filling stadiums, while Hillary Clinton couldn’t fill a bookstore. The same phenomenon is playing out this year. Third, people are fed up. In 2016, they were aghast at being called “deplorables.” This year, it’s the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation. Not only were Americans disgusted with efforts to destroy a man’s career with decades-old accusations that had neither evidence nor corroboration, but the screaming, crying, chanting mobs pounding on the Supreme Court and U.S. Senate doors also looked to be a harbinger of what’s considered “normal” under Democratic rule. Fourth, the electoral map is changing. #WalkAway is a thing. We’re all hearing from lifelong Democrats who have said “enough” and are voting Republican this fall. While it would be stupid to conclude that the GOP will have their loyalties forever (in fact, quite the opposite is the point), the more immediate issue is that the Democrats can’t count on those voters’ loyalties now. When Democrats force Americans to choose between the Constitution and the Democratic Party, the Constitution still wins. Fifth, illegal immigration worries the whole country. The “migrant caravan” converging on our southern border is a disaster waiting to happen. Add to this an economic boom, rising wages and employment, and stronger foreign policy, and it’s hard to see where the “blue wave” is coming from. Hating Donald Trump isn’t enough.