Yellow Dogs and Dead Pimps

Party more important than people in midterms

Well, the 2018 midterms are history and the vaunted Blue Wave was little more than a bit of foam washed upon the beach.

Many saw the elections as a referendum on President Donald Trump. If so, any rebuke from the public was mild. True, Democrats now have the House of Representatives but Republicans held the Senate and even added to their majority there. Which likely means a lot of gridlock over the next couple of years. Some folks would say that’s not such a bad thing.

President Trump spent Wednesday morning proclaiming victory. The Democrats did the same. Neither really have all that much to crow about.

One of the more amusing—and instructive— races comes from Nevada, a state known for its embrace of both vice and eccentricity. Dennis Hof, a self-described pimp who owns several legal brothels there, won a seat in the state assembly. It wasn’t even close. The Republican Hoff won by more than 7,000 votes.

Only one problem—he’s dead. Hof cast off this mortal coil last month while celebrating his 72nd birthday. His body was found in one of his establishments.

Can you imagine how his opponent must feel? Beaten by a dead pimp?

But it’s not really about the individuals running. Rather the Nevada vote is an example of partisanship to the core. Hof ran in heavily Republican territory and the voters there showed their party allegiance at the polls. Since Hof ran as a Republican, the county will appoint a Republican to fill the seat, which is what voters wanted.

There used to be folks, especially in the South, who proudly called themselves “Yellow Dog Democrats,” the message being they would vote for a yellow dog running with a “D” beside his name over any Republican.

Those folks are still around, though not in the numbers they once commanded. And now it looks like we have “Dead Pimp Republicans” as well.