Shocker: the Democrats are actually winning the 1/6 commission battle and the infrastructure battle
To hear most pundits tell it, the Democrats in Congress had a terrible week. They’re wasting time trying to negotiate with a Republican Party that has cleverly decided not to negotiate, and as a result, the Democrats have blown it, and now all hope is lost. But meanwhile back in the real world, a very different storyline has played out.
The Democrats know that the Republicans aren’t going to play ball with them on the 1/6 commission or the infrastructure bill. So what are they bothering to try to work with the Republicans anyway? Because it’s how you win. The Democrats have the majority. Once the Republicans finally have to admit they’re not willing to play ball on either of these issues, the Democrats will get to do whatever they want – and they’ll get to argue to the voters in the middle that they tried to work in bipartisan fashion.
It’s the best of both worlds. If Republican Senators go ahead and shoot down the 1/6 commission – or even better, if they make fools of themselves by filibustering it and then killing it – the Democrats will then get to just run their own 1/6 investigation through the relevant House committee. It’ll be just as powerful. It’ll get just as much television time. And the Republicans will have less control over it. Nancy Pelosi even reminded everyone during her press conference this week that she has the power to do precisely that; she’s simply waiting for the Republicans to make their bed first.
It’s the same story with the infrastructure bill. The Senate has already ruled that the Democrats can pass it with just fifty votes. That means they don’t need any Republicans, and they can just pass whatever infrastructure package the fifty of them agree on. That is precisely what will end up happening. But first President Biden is going to prove to the voters in the middle that he graciously made an attempt at bipartisanship, even as he lets Republican Senators prove to voters how uninterested they are in bipartisanship.
By the time this is all done the Democrats will be running the 1/6 congressional investigation themselves in the manner they see fit, they’ll be passing whatever infrastructure package they want, all while getting to make the case to 2022 voters that they tried to work with the numbskull Republicans. The Democrats will get the best of all worlds.
Meanwhile the Republicans will be left trying to explain to 2022 voters why they did nothing to help bring the Capitol attackers to justice, why they did nothing to help make a very popular infrastructure package happen, and why they refuse to make any sort of attempt at bipartisanship.
This is how winning and strategy actually work in politics. The voters in the middle like a winning side that gets things done, but they also like a gracious winner who at least tries to work with the other side. The Democrats have spent this past week playing precisely that role. They’ll get all the credit for the infrastructure package and the 1/6 investigation. The Republicans will just look like fools for being obstructionists who refused to work with anyone and losers who couldn’t get anything done.
Pundits keep pushing the notion that the Democrats somehow losing, or weak, or not doing anything. But that’s simplistic nonsense, based on the false premise that “doing something” in politics means stomping your feet and threatening to set your hair on fire. Meanwhile in the real world, the Democrats are pursuing smart strategies that are actually winning. It’s why they and President Biden have high approval ratings, and the Republicans are increasingly at risk of losing in 2022.
