ARE THE DEMOCRATS WINNING?

BRYCE ON POLITICS

- Even with their visceral and intolerant behavior?

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Democrats claim the "Blue Tide" is rising as we approach the 2018 midterm elections. As evidence, they point to a series of polls showing them ahead by 6%.

If the Democrats are confident of the outcome, one cannot help wonder why their overall campaign has turned so vicious. The public is well aware of the nasty insults and snubs from the Democrat-leaning entertainment world, such as Samantha Bee, Peter Fonda, Robert DeNiro, Kathy Griffin, Madonna, Seth Rogan, et al. They go well beyond lacking tact, to just plain being crude and distasteful. They are certainly not amusing and would not be favorably met by the news media if such comments were directed towards a Democrat, but it appears to be acceptable to address them at Republicans, thereby revealing the double-standard set by the media.

The far-Left has now taken on the tactic of heckling Republicans when out in public, such as Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen in a Mexican restaurant, Press Secretary Sarah Sanders in a Lexington, Virginia restaurant, and Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi at the Tampa Theatre. Again, if such intimidation was aimed at Democrats, the news media would claim foul play, but if it is applied to Republicans, it is evidently an acceptable form of behavior.

Now, prominent Democrats, such as Rep. Maxine Waters of California has called on her supporters to harass Trump administration officials in public. This has raised eyebrows in Washington, as it is an obvious attempt to confront party opponents. Anyone who openly opposes the dogma of the Left is now fair game, and it appears Progressive zealots take it as a green light by the party to leverage mayhem on Republicans. At this time, Rep. Walters is unapologetic for her rhetoric which could very well lead to violence.

Following the confrontation with Sarah Sanders, The Red Hen restaurant owner, Stephanie Wilkinson, issued a statement, "I'm not a huge fan of confrontation. I have a business, and I want the business to thrive. This feels like the moment in our democracy when people have to make uncomfortable actions and decisions to uphold their morals."

What this implies is that battle lines are being drawn and opens the door to a potential fatal incident, whether accidental or premeditated. So much for civility in politics. We used to be a country who tolerated opposing viewpoints. Evidently this is not what the Left will accept anymore.

There is only one problem with all this, it is backfiring on the Democrats. First, such behavior fires up the Republican base which will inevitably result in a greater turnout at the precincts. Second, such theatrics are a turnoff to independent voters who are desperately needed if the Democrats hope to retake Congress. According to a recent Rasmussen Poll, 51% now see Democrats as the party of "Identity Politics and Victimology." In other words, they are now perceived as the party of hate.

To make matters worse, in a recent Gallup Poll, Americans who are satisfied with the direction of the country has reached a twelve year high, going back to September 2005. In the survey, all age groups and genders showed a marked improvement, but in particular, independents showed an eleven point bump, making it bad news for the Democrats.

Since the Democrats have virtually no programs to offer the American voter, nor are they willing to sit down and legislate, as they fear it will only produce a win for the Republicans, they now suffer from the stigma of being obstructionists. Their strategy going into the mid-terms seems rather obvious, tie up the Republicans with perceived problems for them to refute. This is a "Whack-A-Mole" approach whereby if one problem is solved, another will surface, and another, and another, until November.

All of this reveals the desperation of the Democrats. No, they are not in the driver's seat for this election. If they were, we wouldn't be seeing any of this. Regardless of what the polls tell us, the Democrats have fallen behind and the Republicans can now see them in their rear-view mirrors. Also let us not forget, the polls they are quoting from are the same ones which got the 2016 presidential election horribly wrong.

Keep the Faith!

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Tim Bryce is a writer and the Managing Director of M&JB Investment Company (M&JB) of Palm Harbor, Florida and has over 40 years of experience in the management consulting field. He can be reached at timb001@phmainstreet.com

For Tim's columns, see:   timbryce.com

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