The central question for Democrats everywhere nowadays just may be this: Do we have to become Trump in order to beat him? You know, get down in the muck, rule of law and even civility be damned. Can Democrats remain principled and still ultimately win — or have we officially entered a new era of political zero sum, eye-for-eye warfare?
I fear that Sen. Bob Casey, of all people, might be answering just that question right now, at our collective peril. It’s been two weeks since the election, and he still hasn’t conceded, despite the Associated Press calling the race for Dave McCormick. It is, of course, Casey’s right to exhaust every legal means at his disposal in order to, as his still-relentless fundraising emails put it, make sure that every vote is counted.
But it turns out that some extra-legal means might also be in play. A month before election day, the state Supreme Court — a majority of whom are Democrats — ruled against counting undated or wrongfully-dated provisional ballots.
In football there are referees who are charged with maintaining the integrity of the game. In politics, that’s kind of up to the players themselves.
“This Court will neither impose nor countenance substantial alterations to existing laws and procedures during the pendency of an ongoing election,” wrote Justices Christine Donohue and Debra Todd. “We said those carefully chosen words only weeks ago. Yet they apparently were not heard in the Commonwealth Court, the very court where the bulk of election litigation unfolds.”
You might not like that ruling — I don’t, because our problem is that too few people vote, so we should be erring on the side of tolerating inconsequential mistakes in the absence of willful fraud — but the Court had spoken. That didn’t stop Bucks County Democratic Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia from arguing to openly defy the Court order.
“I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore in this country,” she said at a commission meeting. “People violate laws any time they want. So, for me, if I violate this law, it’s because I want a court to pay attention.”
Casey endorsed Ellis-Marseglia and her fellow Democrat Bob Harvie last year — urging voters to “reject extremism at the ballot box” — and his silence in the face of Ellis-Marseglia’s partisan nihilism is disappointing at best. No, it’s not election denial and insurrection on Trump’s level. But shouldn’t we expect more from Bob Casey?
Et tu, Casey?
Just a few days after the election, when it already looked like Casey had been beaten, I went on 6abc’s Inside Story and praised the Senator for his many years of public service. “What I will miss, and what we have precious little of, is just people with a quiet temperament,” I said. “Bob Casey, to his credit, did not engage in culture war.”
Instead, now Casey is complicit in the raising of our political temperature. Ellis-Marseglia’s comments led directly to last week’s tweet from our soon-to-be de facto vice (co?) president Elon Musk: “The Democratic Party senate candidate in Pennsylvania is trying to change the outcome of the election by counting NON-CITIZEN votes, which is illegal. That has been their goal all along. They are just flat-out openly doing crime now.”
That prompted a quick Philly-like reply from Democratic party boss Bob Brady: “hey @elonmusk i don’t know you, you don’t know me. but if you really think we’re stealing an election, come to Philly — I’ll bring any Democratic official you want. we’ve got nothing to hide. just pick a date and time … clock is ticking. and go birds.”
The Inquirer jumped in to clarify matters, noting that “It is illegal for noncitizens to vote in federal elections and there is no evidence of widespread voting by noncitizens in Pennsylvania, let alone that Democrats are working to count their votes in the state.”
While that’s true, there ought to be more outrage from The Inquirer and others about what the Dems are doing when it comes to Casey’s never-ending pursuit of avoiding what sure seems like inevitable defeat. Democrats should be looking inward, asking themselves why the majority of the country prefers a convicted felon whose last term ended in historic disapproval ratings over what they’re selling. They should not be borrowing from said Dear Leader’s playbook. Forget the morality of it; haven’t we learned by now that you can’t out-Trump Trump?
Ever since the Swift Boating of John Kerry 20 years ago — a turning point in the use of political lies — Republicans have perfected the art of branding their opponent as perpetrator of the misdeed that they themselves have committed. Back then, the party that had stood by what had become a disgraceful war in Southeast Asia somehow made one of its heroes seem ethically compromised.
Trump has mastered this art of political “I know you are, but what am I?” So now we have a Casey loyalist arguing to defy a court order and Casey’s silence in response. Could you help the Fox News message machine more, as it purposefully muddies the water as to which side really practices election interference?
I get that it’s the final seconds of a close game and Casey is sending all receivers into the end zone and hoisting a Hail Mary. But in football there are referees who are charged with maintaining the integrity of the game. In politics, that’s kind of up to the players themselves. We already know that Trump has declared war on the integrity of elections, and virtually all of our institutions. God help us if Bob Casey and his allies reply in kind, even if just by degree.
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