ELECTION 2022: Democrats Shiver With The Clock Ticking

Louis XIV coined that phrase to say that all hell was going to break loose once his time passed in a conversation with his mistress. He was right: by 1789, it did.

Democrats seem right now to be saying the same.

Some examples, from today’s news, starting with Fox News:

The special election in Texas’ Sixth Congressional District on Saturday was seen as the first competitive race since Joe Biden was elected president and a bellwether on how a district that was seen to be purpling reacted to the new administration’s first 100 days.

The results were seen as a blow to Democrats because two Republicans earned enough votes to advance to a runoff. Susan Wright, the wife of the late Republican Rep. Ron Wright, was followed in votes by Jake Ellzey who eked out a win over Democrat Jana Lynne Sanchez. (Sanchez conceded in a social media post. She lost by about 400 votes.)

The headline stated that the special election result Saturday raised major questions about Biden’s supposed popularity. You can bet that election got Democrats’ attention. They couldn’t even get one candidate past the runoff post, and now voters will choose between two Republicans, all in a district that had been billed as “competitive.”

It’s bad out there. Democrats know it.

Here’s another one, from the Washington Post:

Midterm prospects are dimming as red states gain congressional seats

A growing list of House Democrats from competitive districts is headed for the exits, adding yet another concern for a party facing an uphill fight to maintain control of Congress next year.

The writer cites the bailouts of Rep. Cheri Bustos of Illinois, a Democrat bigfoot I wrote about here, along with Reps. Reps. Filemon Vela Jr. (D-Tex.), Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.), and Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), all swing-state representatives. None of them wants to face voters in 2022. They know the Biden record,

There’s even more to this in this news item just from NBC News today. First, the headline:

Biden pursues GOP infrastructure deal as anxious Democrats watch the clock

 After all the other tax-and-spend program votes from Democrats, blowing out the federal budget, Democrats are nervous about this last one, a sleazily dishonest bid to disguise the socialist green new deal as put out by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, as now an “infrastructure” bill. That’s a bridge too far, not just for Republicans, but actually, some Democrats. Word’s out. And the proof of it? That Democrats are watching the impact of this trash on how it could affect elections, and a few are pulling back. What the article itself states is this:

WASHINGTON — As President Joe Biden doubles down on seeking Republican cooperation for an infrastructure package, some Democratic allies say he should be prepared to go it alone if a deal doesn’t materialize quickly.

The White House wants to see counteroffers to Biden’s $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan by the middle of this month, and if progress isn’t being made by Memorial Day, officials will reassess their strategy of trying to build bipartisan support, said a person familiar with the negotiations.

Some moderate Democrats insist on cutting a deal — and others worry that it would be a dead end that would burn valuable time.

Translation: They want the whole thing to be on Joe, not themselves. They’re trying to save their skin. They know the clock is ticking, and somehow, they know how voters are going to vote. It would seem that they’d jump right onboard with this economy-killing green new deal if it were popular. Instead, they want Joe to be the sin-eater and themselves to escape from punishment, from the voters come 2022.

All of these things, except perhaps the last one, are indicators, but not perfectly solid ones.

As a cautionary note, Ace of Spades’s J.J. Sefton notes today that rigging is still going on, and blue cities are still voting blue, so nothing is foreordained. Nevertheless, the fear of the Democrats of 2022, based on their rats-fleeing-the-sinking-ship behavior is pretty palpable, too.

Let’s start the 2022 congressional campaign early.

••••