Doubling down

Most people are aware of the old idiom that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

As an observer of politics (every so often I dust off my 47-year-old Political Science degree) I was as shocked as anyone about the results of this year’s mid-term elections.

If I were a Republican political strategist, I would be doing some deep soul searching about what needs to change so that last week’s election results are not repeated in the future. But from here, so far it looks like the Grand Old Party is doubling down on the actions that, in my mind, are what turned voters in the blue direction this year.

At the national level, promoting Stephen Miller to Chief of Staff is doubling down on a losing strategy.

Voters in 2024 were clear that they wanted the border to be secure. They wanted  violent criminals rounded up and deported. They didn’t want Americans shot and killed on city streets by masked agents; they didn’t want children ripped from their parents’ arms; they don’t want the people who take care of their landscaping rounded up and put in detention centers without due process.

Stephen Miller is the architect of all that cruelty, and elevating his position in the White House is not only wrong, it will do nothing to improve Republican chances in 2028.

Randy Keck is owner and publisher of The Community News.