OPINION:
The New York Times put out this headline in the aftermath of Tuesday elections that went like this: “Republican Voters Embrace Trump-Style Candidates.”
And with that, all the Democrats’ wind for the 2020 White House went — whoosh.
So much for the Trump Resistance Train.
So much for the campaign slogans, “We Are Not Trump!”
So much for the idea that voters are so, so, so tired of Trump and they’ll vote for a zebra before re-electing the circus act. Right?
The story speaks volumes: “Republican voters lashed out against traditional party leaders Tuesday, ousting Representative Mark Sanford of South Carolina and nominating a conservative firebrand for Senate in Virginia [Corey Stewart], the latest illustration that fealty to President Trump and his hard-line politics is paramount on the right.”
This is an eye-opening admission for the media, especially the left-leaning media, to make.
For months now, Trump supporters have been sold the line that this president’s popularity has been dwindling to embarrassing lows, and that the smart candidates for public office would spend their campaign dollars on distancing themselves from this White House.
The left leaners in the media, the Democratic Party — even GOP leaders — have been crowing-slash-warning about the so-called Trump Effect that will supposedly see voters returning to some sort of political normal this November, and electing candidates more in line with establishment principles.
Trump’s an albatross, they said; Trump’s a liability. Run, Trump fans, run.
“It was the upset in Mr. Sanford’s Charleston-area House district, however, that represented the starkest reminder that many Republican voters now demand total fidelity to the president,” The New York Times wrote. “Mr. Sanford … has repeatedly taken aim at Mr. Trump. Mr. Sanford has demanded Mr. Trump release his tax returns while bemoaning what he calls ’the cult of personality’ gripping the G.O.P.”
Well, call it whatever — fact is: Voters aren’t done with Trump just yet.
The elites, the left, the establishment, the career politicians may moan about this president’s Make America Great Again at all costs type of leadership. But apparently, voters are quite happy with the direction Trump’s taking America — and in fact, seem to want more of it.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley.
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