Earlier than the “Pink Wave” was downgraded to a crimson trickle on Election Evening, the New York Instances handed out some snowflake-friendly tricks to its overwhelmingly liberal readership on dealing with election. The foolish “5 ways to soothe election stress” included the suggestion “Plunge your face right into a bowl with ice water…” That definitely sounds emotionally wholesome.
The ice baths turned out pointless for Democrats, except they lived in Florida and Texas, the place conservatives had been cheered up by whopping re-election wins by the Republican governors in these states.
In Texas, Republican Greg Abbott simply gained re-election in opposition to the perennial also-ran Democrat (and the media’s JFK-wannabe) Beto O’Rourke. Reporter J. David Goodman appeared to commiserate with Democrats in regards to the unhappy state of the social gathering there: “Throughout Texas, Neither a Pink Wave Nor a Blue One.”
Beto O’Rourke, the Democratic challenger to Gov. Greg Abbott, failed to draw sufficient new supporters to enhance upon his efficiency within the U.S. Senate race in 2018, incomes for himself a second statewide loss and renewed questions on his political future.
Try these smears within the guise of Republicans descriptors.
The conservative sweep of statewide places of work included Ken Paxton, the Trump-endorsed and criminally-indicted legal professional normal of the state, who was re-elected to a 3rd time period, and Dan Patrick, the hard-right lieutenant governor, who had drawn some opposition from his personal social gathering over his management of the State Senate, however not sufficient to make a distinction in his re-election.
The victories appeared prone to end in a brand new spherical of conservative proposals when the Republican-dominated State Legislature meets subsequent yr….
Goodman additionally wrote a narrative trying past Beto, who has now misplaced three elections in a row.
Just some months earlier, the Republican Celebration’s vaunted maintain on Texas had appeared weak, and Mr. O’Rourke appeared like the precise option to take it on. However he returned dwelling to El Paso on Tuesday nonetheless probably the most well-known Texas Democrat by no means to win a race outdoors of his hometown.
Goodman’s wording right here begs the query, “deflating blow” to who? It feels like Goodman himself:
In an election during which anger over abortion restrictions and gun violence appeared destined to drive Democratic turnout, Mr. O’Rourke’s loss got here as a deflating blow.
For years, his better-than-expected run for the U.S. Senate in 2018 had given hope to Democrats of an impending breakthrough in Texas….
All hail Beto, he sacrificed himself so others might win!
And the Democratic Celebration didn’t come out of the election empty-handed. Early on, some had seen Mr. O’Rourke’s candidacy as a type of sacrificial effort: He may lose, however he might entice Democrats to the polls and assist others win. He didn’t generate the anticipated turnout, however some Democrats with robust races — together with congressional incumbents in South Texas — did come away with wins.
Shifting east, the paper needed to acknowledge the overwhelming nature of Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’s reelection win, a virtually 20-point margin over Democrat Charlie Crist.
However the Instances’ traditional labeling slant kicked in in its on-line election updates, pitting Democrat “Charlie Crist, who has solid himself as a centrist Democrat” in opposition to Gov. Ron DeSantis, “a hard-right conservative.”