OPINION:
Democrats are rapidly emerging as Republicans’ best hope for 2020. Why?
They’re failing to see how fed up Americans are getting with the whole “Donald Trump did it” line of messaging from the left, despite the far more factual “Donald Trump didn’t do it” special counsel report from Robert Mueller.
They’re failing to see how their ongoing push for impeachment for crimes not committed only sideline them as ridiculous in the eyes of the average U.S. voter.
While good for Republicans, and perhaps good for some shows in the media that relied heavily on impeach-impeach-impeach as the big ratings draw of the day, this hyper-partisanship led by the likes of “I know something you don’t know” Rep. Adam Schiff is wearying. There comes a time when it’s time to move on. And that time has come.
A largely ignored poll from Harvard Caps/HarrisX released last month, before Mueller’s redacted findings were made public, before Attorney General William Barr’s summary was sent into the stratosphere, showed 65 percent of voters believed “the investigation is hurting the country,” said HarrisX CEO Dritan Nesho, in a recent interview on Hill.TV.
Other findings of this survey?
“What we saw is … less than 2 in 10 voters now believe that there was any evidence of collusion,” Nesho said, The Hill reported. “There is acceptance and there is a little bit of investigation fatigue at play.”
No doubt, Democrats in recent days have reignited some of the waning interest of Mueller’s investigation, in large part by scouring for any stray words that can raise doubts about President Donald Trump’s innocence or for any lingering question marks to exploit. The once-collusion charge has been turned into an obstruction ghost that Democrats won’t shoo or shush, in hopes nobody will notice the flimsiness of an obstruction allegation that’s minus a crime. (Thus, the ghost analogy.)
But honestly, the fatigue of America with this neverending investigation is real.
Voters like to see their elected members fight for the issues on which they were elected. Voters also want to see distinctions between the parties, not simply concessions, caves and constant crossings of partisan lines that yield political benefits for the pols, but nothing for the constituents. Voters in both parties are alike on this: Fight, fight, fight for what’s right for our party, they say. Quit quitting our party principles to coordinate and cooperate with the other party, they say.
But dead horses ought to remain dead.
And this is where the Mueller investigation is rapidly heading — down dead horse lane.
Let’s talk economy. Let’s talk education. Let’s talk immigration and national security. Let’s even talk about the emerging threat to America’s way of life, both culturally and politically — the evils of socialism. But Mueller, impeachment and the parsing of hundreds of pages of words in hopes of finding the combination that crumbles this White House?
Yawn.
No matter how Dems drag it out, they’re political misstepping. The average American wants a country that works for them, and Beltway machinations don’t play as the political insiders would expect. Can you say Donald Trump won, Hillary Clinton lost?
Keep up the Mueller intrigues, Democrats, and 2020 will be nothing but wins for Republicans.
It’s only a shame when you think of the boredom Americans will have to suffer in the campaign process.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley.
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