"The problem, which should be obvious, is that Democrats did not make democracy a partisan issue. Republicans did. They did when they stood with Donald Trump in the wake of Jan. 6; they did when they embraced 'Stop the steal' and election-denying candidates; they did when they made light of the threats against Nancy Pelosi and the assault on her husband.
"There is nothing stopping Republican candidates and Republican voters and Republican leaders from pursuing their partisan and ideological goals while keeping their commitment to free and fair elections. There is nothing stopping them from rejecting antidemocracy extremists in their midst and affirming the vital principles of popular sovereignty, rule of law and political equality. There is nothing stopping them, in other words, from making a different set of choices about the kind of political party they wish to be part of.
"It’s not Democrats who left the voting public with only one choice if they want to protect democracy as they know it. The reason the stakes are so high is that the Republican Party has made them this high." (our emphasis) -- New York Times op-ed writer Jamelle Bouie laying out where the problem lies.
The increasingly desensitized and distracted public, encouraged by Republican / Insurrectionist Party candidates to ignore their dark agenda and focus on grocery bills, are probably tired of hearing that this election is about preserving democracy. The cynical among them may just regard it as alarmist election season talk. Should the fascist right gain power in the House and Senate, we'll see how long it takes for those cynics to realize that voting in protest of inflation (which the fascists have no solution for) wasn't a good deal if we lose our democratic republic in the process.
