My Election Thoughts
It was a long night and an early morning, but in the clear light of day, even after promised legal challenges, I still think Biden wins.
The Biden strategy was to re-build the Blue Wall in the Upper Midwest — brick by brick, county by county — and to break the Southern Red Wall by growing voters in urban communities. That strategy seems to be bearing fruit. However, Democrats continue to underestimate the deep-rooted center-right American electorate that resides outside urban areas. Karl Rove and Newt Gingrich thought getting rid of moderates would bring about more GOP wins but it only took two decades to effectively fracture our country.
The Democrats’ failure to capture the Senate will create a firewall for a center-right coalition of moderate, pro-business and anti-tax advocates.
It’s much easier to shout from the House than to govern from the Senate. And, while there will still be a hell of a lot of shouting coming from the progressive wing in the House, that yelling is going to be tamped down by a strengthened GOP House minority.
An emboldened, moderate Senate is poised to stymie a progressive agenda at every turn.
A legislative Green New Deal has been derailed. Progressive tax increases like cap gains and death taxes are going nowhere. And, efforts to pack the court are kaput. Far left appointments won’t get Senate approval so the Cabinet envisioned by Sanders, Warren and Ocasio-Cortez has effectively been benched.
Progressives have lost. Florida is the shining example of an electorate repudiating what was defined as a left-leaning socialist agenda.
It’s not the slam dunk the Democrats were hoping for but it may be a blessing in disguise — keeping the party from lurching so far left that they walk off a cliff. I predict Wall Street will rejoice giving an early economic boost to a new Biden Administration.
It’s unclear what will happen during any transition period. However, everyone has gone to school on Trump’s use of executive orders, so expect to see more of that during the transition. That strategy will surely be embraced by any new Administration.
There will be ample opportunities for a pro-business agenda to be put forward and supported. And, more importantly, smart Biden/Harris strategists will be seeking those opportunities to lay the groundwork to continue re-building the Blue Wall in the Upper Midwest and break down the Southern Red Wall. There will be no time to waste communicating those messages to the new Administration.
–Gloria Story Dittus, Chairman of Story Partners
