By Chris Powell
Having won the presidency, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, Republicans think they have a great mandate to remake the federal government. While there is indeed much to remake, the election’s vote totals, while shocking to many, don’t show anything close to a mandate.
When all votes are counted Donald Trump probably will have won the popular vote by a margin of only 2%. While that is notable because two recent Republican presidents — George W. Bush in 2000 and Trump himself in 2016 — were chosen by the Electoral College without winning the popular vote, it’s common for presidents to win both.
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The new Republican margin in the Senate will be only 53-47, on the smaller side of recent Senate margins. Republicans flipped only four of the 34 seats up for election.
The new Republican margin in the House probably will be 222 to 213, also on the small side historically, the Republicans having flipped only two seats more than the Democrats did.
Of course Republicans might have done much better for Congress if the campaign had been waged entirely on a policy agenda and not also on the personal defects of their presidential candidate. But “might have” isn’t a mandate either.
Nevertheless, if they hope to make lasting changes, Trump and congressional Republicans should move fast, acting as if they have a mandate while the Democrats remain stunned.
Deporting the millions of migrants who entered the country illegally under the Biden administration will not be easy or pretty. It will take years, and “sanctuary states” — that is, nullification states, Democratic states like Connecticut — may engage in furious obstruction. Along with the Biden administration these states bet heavily on changing the country’s demographics in time for the next federal census and congressional redistricting so they could create another 20 or 30 permanently Democratic districts, districts full of people ineligible to vote but still counted for districting.
Other urgent Republican objectives may be achieved more easily — like requiring that all voters produce photo identification and evidence of citizenship, and defunding the political left, especially higher education, where the estimated $1.75 trillion in college loan debt is not a subsidy to students but to educators, the indoctrinators who constitute the biggest part of the Democratic army.
These objectives will become harder to achieve if the new administration doesn’t produce a stronger economy and end inflation in its first year, and that seems unlikely amid Trump’s enthusiasm for deficit spending and tariffs.
Easily re-elected, Connecticut’s big-thinking U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy has joined the chorus of Democratic leaders asserting that it’s time to “rebuild the left.” But the left remains strong, supported by the partisan and propagandizing news media, the cultural and business establishment, millions of unionized government employees, and many government-funded entities. What’s weak is the private sector.
Murphy and those other Democratic big thinkers have noticed that Trump built a surprisingly diverse coalition and that the Democratic Party has alienated the working class, as if this is some great insight. Really, what did they think would happen after years of soaring inflation and unchecked illegal immigration, policies that spectacularly drove up the cost of living and drove down wages for less-skilled people?
Murphy had little to say about those things in his campaign but he often broadcast a commercial in which he cited “gun safety” legislation he got passed and said he’d “do anything to keep our kids safe.”
But he didn’t say what his gun law did, and shootings among fatherless and uneducated young men continue daily. Indeed, there are so many guns in circulation in the country that “gun safety” is meaningless, just a political distraction. Only mandatory life sentences for gun crimes would make any difference, and Democrats refuse to put more people in prison. Run by Democrats, Connecticut refuses even to prosecute most gun crimes.
If Murphy really would do anything to keep kids safe, he should examine social disintegration and find them some parents. They get little from the pretend government he conjures for them.
Chris Powell has written about Connecticut government and politics for many years. (CPowell@cox.net)
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Chris Powell column 
Another great column. I think we may all be surprised at the number of illegals who opt to self-deport. Assuming Homan’s plan gets off the ground (and the mainstream media are not successful in controlling the narrative on how inhumane it is to return illegals to their native country), I suspect that once it becomes apparent that the federal government is successfully identifying, locating, capturing, and deporting those illegals who are wanted or are already felons, many more will opt to leave the United States (maybe even with their families) instead of dreading that eventual door-knock at dawn.
Having worked on cases involving fugitives for several years, I know how stressful (and expensive) it is on fugitives (and their families) to live in the shadows. With the option of leaving — rather than being arrested and held — I’m sure some will self-deport. The government should consider providing them with air fare and maybe even a stipend if they opt to leave voluntarily. This would go a long way to reducing the costs and time of deportation through the court system.
Greg Dillon
Author of “The Thin Blue Lie: An Honest Cop vs. The FBI”
http://www.thinblueliebook.comhttp://www.thinblueliebook.com
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