It is so goddamn refreshing to see Democrats, at long last, finding some sort of spine as the 2026 midterm elections head to a close. Refreshing, and kinda disappointing, because they could've done this years ago and instead allowed Republicans to define toughness as macho posturing bullshit.
Certainly, this newfound lack of fucks to give is primarily the province of newcomers. Like Michigan senatorial candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who fucking nails it:
how does ohio boy vance keep walking right into the buzzsaw of one of the midwest's most Ancient Tribal Hatreds. dog no one in michigan cares what your OSU ass has to say
— dr. rich traditions, JD (@helldude.bsky.social) October 15, 2026 at 8:11 PM
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The author of that Bluesky skeet goes on to drop some absolutely spot-on analysis:
More El-Sayed. More Coach Walz calling 'em freaks. And no more pearl-clutching Jeffries, Schumer, and the centrist Dem establishment.
Sweep the leg. Humiliate them. And make them wear your contempt like a goddamn hairshirt.
Ahhh yes, the famously successful Walz playbook.
ReplyDeletethe walz playbook never got used. as soon as he became the veep nominee he was neutered by the centrist dipshits that ran the campaign. had they let walz cook, i believe things would have played out differently. his early truth-telling about the gop freak show was cutting through the noise. hell, it’s why he got on the radar in the first place.
ReplyDeleteWe shall see. I know we disagree on this, but believe we need the centrist dipshits to step up and take this type of attitude.
ReplyDeleteWe will see what happens in Michigan, but the fact that it is even close speaks to the peril of candidates on the political periphery. Michigan should be a slam dunk for the Dems for senate. Strong urban area support with significant labor influence in a state getting HAMMERED by tariffs, energy prices, and the overall fallout of the dumbest fucking trade war ever with Canada. But yet somehow Mike Rodgers is somehow still in this race. It should be a rout.
The same is true in Texas. The GOP running MAGA shitstain Ken Paxton has made the previously unthinkable possible. The last Democrat to win a statewide senate election was Lloyd Bentsen in 1988!
i agree wholeheartedly that the centrists should step up and take this kind of attitude. the fact that they haven't boggles me.
ReplyDeleteperhaps the el-sayeds in the party will drag the overton window far enough that the center will feel comfortable speaking up.
ReplyDeleteThere's no one-size-fits-all approach to this. Mamdami's schtick works for a NYC mayoral campaign but not a Kansan senatorial campaign. AOC works in the Bronx and Queens but not Staten Island. The Democrats need to run candidates who can get votes from the electorate for that race. El-Sayed's "fucking wolverine" bravado might work in Michigan but it probably wouldn't work in Iowa, even if he ran closer to the center.
ReplyDeleteThis post in general and Tim's point about Michigan politics in particular prompted me to go down a Michigan politics rabbit hole. Won't bore you with too many details but main takeaways are that far-right groups, such as America First, have surged there and supplanted centrist Republicans.
ReplyDeleteYeah, there's a large labor and union component that often leans Democrat, but many of them have been swayed by disgust over what they see as Democrat elitism and failure to address kitchen-table issues. Plus, relentless MAGA messaging that Dems are socialists and communists and want to take over "your" country.
Bill Clinton and Obama won there twice. Al Gore and John Kerry also carried the state over W. Trump won in 2016, Biden in '20 and Trump again in '24. He won 74 of 83 counties last go 'round. All in all, election map there is a lot redder than it used to be, even 20 years ago.