Doug Mastriano's victory in the Pennsylvania GOP Senate primary was broadly celebrated by Democrats, because he is perceived as too extreme to be electable in November. He has spoken at QAnon conspiracy theory rallies, has ties to a cult-like church that believes the AR-15 is ordained by God, and was even present at the Capitol during the January 6 insurrection.
For that reason, Democrats tried to promote him in the primary behind the scenes, with Democratic gubernatorial nominee Josh Shapiro even running a campaign ad fake-attacking him for being too close to former President Donald Trump to try to trick GOP primary voters into rallying around him.
But on CNN Wednesday, conservative commentator S.E. Cupp warned that this could backfire, and Mastriano might not be as unelectable as Democrats think he is.
"What is your biggest takeaway this morning?" asked anchor Jim Sciutto.
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"Well, in Pennsylvania, I think the unspoken story is how influential Democrats were in Mastriano's win," said Cupp. "They took a big risk, Mastriano, because that's who they want to face. They're tying him to Trump, feeling as though Pennsylvania isn't as extreme as it may be."
"That is so risky because I think, especially in swing states now, you have to think that where it is red, it is very red," continued Cupp. "I think Democrats are thinking there are imaginary districts now where it might be red, but moderate Republicans. Those are very rare and increasingly so. So to me, the lessons of 2016 make that a very risky strategy. We'll see if it works in November."
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