Boy, it’s been a tough day so far for populist firebrand and disheveled homeless man whose only joy in life is karaoke night at the local bowling alley and who can count the number of friends he has on this pinky finger, Steve Bannon:
Steve took a figurative haymaker to the (unshaven) chin last night in his boxing match with the GOP establishment when Alabama elected a Democrat for the first time in a quarter century.
As we detailed first thing this morning, Republicans are furious. Bannon has effectively hijacked the party and turned it into a veritable freak show complete with accused child predators dressed as Woody from Toy Story riding horses to polling stations.
This was also a major setback for Donald Trump although true to form, he actually tried to say “I told you so” after backing the losing candidate:
The reason I originally endorsed Luther Strange (and his numbers went up mightily), is that I said Roy Moore will not be able to win the General Election. I was right! Roy worked hard but the deck was stacked against him!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 13, 2017
Hilariously, he’s right about Strange and he’s also right about Moore although it makes sense that “the deck was stacked against him” because after all, he’s been accused of some pretty damn egregious things.
Even funnier is this from Anthony Scaramucci, who spoke to Bloomberg this morning:
Don’t underestimate Steve Bannon. He’s a warrior and that’s one battle. There’s a bigger war.
That would be the same Scaramucci who literally accused Bannon of being a self-cocksucker earlier this year.
Well now, Wall Street Journal’s increasingly controversial editorial board is out with their take and while they have no problem suggesting that Robert Mueller is a criminal and that the FBI is conspiring against America, what they can’t apparently get behind is Steve Bannon, if that tells you anything.
Alabama voters can be forgiven if they preferred to sit out Tuesday’s special Senate election, but those who turned out narrowly elected Democrat Doug Jones to fill the seat vacated by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. The result is a painful lesson for the Alabama Republicans who nominated Roy Moore in the September primary. But it’s also a useful act of political hygiene for the national Republican Party given the accusations of sexual misconduct against the former judge.
The cost of defeat will be high and immediate. Despite his campaign vows to “cross the aisle” to work with Republicans, Mr. Jones will fit right in with Senate Democrats. He will be a reliable vote for Chuck Schumer on any important matter, including judicial nominees. Had he shown even a scintilla of moderation on abortion, for example, he would have won in a rout.
Mr. Moore’s defeat narrows the GOP majority’s margin to 51-49, which will give even more leverage to individual Senators who want to grandstand or satisfy a political constituency. Alabama evangelical Christians who supported Mr. Moore over appointed Sen. Luther Strange in the GOP primary should know that they have now made a conservative Supreme Court nominee less likely if Justice Anthony Kennedy retires in 2018. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins will hold the balance of judicial confirmation power, and watch the media lobby them in waves.
The good news is that Mr. Moore’s loss may give the GOP a better chance of holding the Senate majority next year. Democrats were primed to make Mr. Moore a national symbol of sexual harassment to drive turnout among women. GOP incumbents would have been asked about Mr. Moore every day.
Mr. Moore’s loss is also a defeat for former White House aide Steve Bannon, who wants to run challengers to every GOP incumbent next year other than Ted Cruz. Mr. Bannon backed Mr. Moore in the primary, though the judge had been removed twice from the state Supreme Court for refusing to follow a legitimate court order. Mr. Moore was a political self-implosion guaranteed to happen.
The voting in Alabama showed that thousands of Republicans, especially women in the suburbs, either stayed home or crossed over to vote for Mr. Jones. They were rejecting an unacceptable candidate in Mr. Moore, not the national GOP agenda.
The Alabama result shows that Mr. Bannon cares less about conservative policy victories than he does personal king-making. He wants to depose Mitch McConnell as Majority Leader even if it costs Republicans Senate control. GOP voters, take note: Mr. Bannon is for losers.
The Moore defeat should also be a lesson to the Republican Party, and President Trump, that many GOP voters are still at heart character voters. They will only accept so much misbehavior in a politician, no matter the policy stakes. Mr. Trump opposed Mr. Moore in the primary but came around to support him even after the accusations emerged about Mr. Moore’s pursuit of teenage girls while he was in his 30s. The GOP voters who ignored Mr. Trump and rejected Mr. Moore also want a President who acts presidential.
As for Alabama Republicans, they’ll get another shot at Mr. Jones in 2020. Maybe they’ll learn from this debacle and nominate a candidate worthy of support.
“Don’t underestimate Steve Bannon. He’s a warrior and that’s one battle. There’s a bigger war.”
“You yellow bastards! Come back and take what’s comin’ to ya!