Democrats in red states are being hit by a "double whammy" of conservatism as President Donald Trump’s agenda emboldens hardcore Republican statehouses. But that could actually backfire for the GOP, a Washington Post columnist wrote Tuesday.
For Perry Bacon Jr., the wave of conservatism coming out of Washington, D.C. is nothing new — right-leaning government is the norm in his Louisville, Kentucky, hometown.
But adding the national layer of conservatism could turn out to be a ‘silver lining” for liberals who have long lived under GOP rule.
"With state legislatures in session and passing laws while the administration rolls out fresh executive orders, there is a seemingly endless wave of policies we don’t agree with being imposed on liberals in Middle America like me,” he wrote.
He added, “Much of the Trump administration’s agenda is old hat for those of us in red states, implemented in our communities even while Joe Biden was in office. That includes limits on transgender rights; attempts to tightly control what K-12 teachers and college professors say in their classrooms about issues of race and gender; and expansions of school voucher programs.
“But it’s likely that having an administration in Washington that is both deeply conservative and very aggressive is emboldening state-level Republicans.”
State laws across the country are reflecting that change, he said — referencing increasingly tough anti-immigration rules in Florida and an attempt in Louisiana to extradite a New York doctor for sending abortion pills into the state.
“The situation is worse here, because it’s more hopeless,” he wrote.
“Nationally, Democrats could win control of Congress next year and the White House in 2028. But in Kentucky, Republicans hold 80 of 100 seats in the state’s House and 31 of 38 in the Senate. They might dominate politics here for decades, overriding any good policy passed in Louisville, which has a Democratic mayor, a majority-Democratic Metro Council and voted 57 percent for Kamala Harris last November.”
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But, he said, the change in the national administration could turn out to be a good thing for embattled red state liberals.
“The only silver lining is that Trump bringing red-state policies to the entire country could build a broader coalition against them," he wrote.
"When Biden was president, he and other Democratic Party leaders said little as Republicans in red states increasingly pushed radical policies. They seemed to only really care about states they could win in presidential elections.
“Now, New York, Los Angeles, D.C., Chicago and other cities are experiencing the direct effects of Trump-style conservatism in the way that Houston, Nashville and Louisville have for years. Hopefully, national liberal organizations and Democratic politicians will focus more on what happens in places like Louisville out of self-interest: Bad policies first put in place here will eventually come to their communities.
“For now, though, it’s open season on liberals in red states. Republican politicians in Washington and state capitals wake up each morning determined to pass laws that don’t address our real problems but instead make our lives worse.”