Visions of a GOP Quadfecta
Visions of a GOP Quadfecta
SCOTUS, White House, Senate, House ... Republicans could soon control them all
Joe Biden's underperformance during last Thursday’s presidential debate with Donald Trump in Atlanta has sent Democrats into total disarray, clearing the way for a second MAGA term in the White House.
Trump is now expected to beat Biden if the incumbent stays in the race. Trump is also expected to receive an insurmountable boost if Biden drops out, especially if he is replaced at the top of the ticket with Vice President Kamala Harris, as expected.
There are still lots of campaigning left to do before November; but as it stands, the safe money is on a second Trump term. Just as in 2016, Democrats have done everything to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory at the top of the ticket. The big question: what effect will Biden have on Democrats in down-ballot races?
Conventional wisdom is that a collapse in support for the president will depress turnout, potentially creating a red-wave election. Normally, I’d ignore such alarmist predictions, especially this far out from election day; but the warnings seem prescient now that Democrats have all but checkmated themselves for 2024.
It’s worth noting that the last time Republicans controlled a quadfecta was in April of 2017 when Justice Neil Gorsuch was confirmed by a GOP-controlled Senate to replace Antonin Scalia on the court. Despite controlling all the branches of government, the only thing Republicans managed to do (predictably) was to pass a massive, unpaid-for tax cut for rich people and corporations.
This is to say, even with a quadfecta, Republicans led by a Trump administration may again fail to get their act together to deliver on the authoritarian promises their frontrunner continues to make to their base. Only time will tell, but preparing for the worst-case scenario (a GOP quadfecta led by a competent White House) is prudent.