BPolitico just posted on X: Texas Democrats are managing expectations before polls close.
BThe chair Kendall Scudder says they may pull off some wins, but it’ll be a good night no matter what.
BThat line is doing a lot of work. “Good night no matter what” means they’re bracing.
BOr he’s being honest in a state where Democrats haven’t won statewide in decades.
BThen why say it an hour before polls close? Wait for the numbers.
BBecause party chairs don’t do exit-poll fiction. They’re trying to keep volunteers in the fight.
BIt sounds like lowering the bar to ankle height.
BOh, come on. That’s not fair. Texas Democrats didn’t invent cautious.
BThis is the same party that said the country was on the brink of dramatic change. Now it’s “some wins maybe”?
B“Some wins” is more believable than “dramatic change.” That’s the point.
BFine. But believable doesn’t exactly fire people up.
BMaybe tonight isn’t about firing people up. It’s about not losing the room.
BAnd Texas has been their white whale for so long, they need a win to keep donors in.
BThat’s exactly the smugness that keeps Democratic turnout low here.
BI’m not being smug. I’m saying the chair knows the math, so he’s hedging.
BThen you and he agree — so why are we arguing?
BBecause he’s dressing it up as a moral victory, and that bugs me.
BHe said “good night no matter what.” That’s not a victory lap, that’s survival.
BSemantics. It’s still spin, just a softer one.
BThen call it honest spin. I’ll take it over triumphant nonsense.
BHonest spin. There’s a bumper sticker.
BDon’t put that on a bumper.
BMeanwhile, the blame war is already louder than the vote count.
BOn X, one post from Yves asks: this happened under full Republican control, in a state that went for Trump — how is this on the Democrats?
BThat’s a rhetorical question, and a little vague about what “this” is.
BRight, it’s commentary, not a fact-checkable claim. But the feeling is clear.
BThe feeling is: if your team holds everything, you own the result. That’s not crazy.
BIt’s just not a clean one-party story. The inflation spike started with pandemic spending and supply chains.
BSo voters mad about grocery prices are just confused?
BNo, I’m saying they don’t care about the origin story. They want someone to fix it.
BExactly. And the party in charge now gets blamed first. That’s politics.
BBut the party in charge last time got blamed too. That’s what I mean by no clean story.
BThen we’re in a cycle where everyone loses and nobody does the hard stuff.
BThen maybe Democrats shouldn’t spend tonight claiming Republicans caused everything.
BBut they should point out who controlled the government when prices exploded. That’s fair.
BIt’s only fair if you also admit the other side inherited a mess.
BI will admit that grudgingly. But this idea that “record high inflation” is still the story? It’s not.
BThat post from Fly Sistah says Republicans are spinning record high inflation as positive. First part is off.
BCurrent reporting says voters are frustrated, but it’s not record high. That’s a correction worth making.
BAnd the second part, “they stopped blaming Biden,” is just an opinion.
BA popular one, though.
BAnd the left on here is doing the exact thing it accuses the right of.
BWhich is what?
BRewriting the timeline so their team never touched the wheel.
BBut they did touch it — Congress controls the purse, and the president signs.
BRight, and so did the last president. That’s my original point.
BSo we agree voters get to be angry at everyone.
BI’d put it less gently.
BLet’s be honest: no one stops blaming the other side on election night.
BThat’s the only thing both parties agree on.
BThe unity we needed.
BThere it is. Bipartisanship.