How Democrats' 2018 Wins Dramatically Improve Trump's Chances for 2020 Victory
There’s an old Chinese folk tale that teaches the lesson that what seems like a bad turn of events at the time might be a blessing in disguise.
Now closing in on two months of Democratic rule in the House of Representatives under Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the ancient story has something to say as President Donald Trump looks toward 2020.
As the tale goes, long ago there was a man who lived on the plains near the Great Wall of China. He had two passions in life: his collection of rare breeds of horses and his son, whom he loved dearly.
One day a servant left a stable door open and one of the man’s prized stallions escaped. The man took it in stride, telling his neighbors who came by to offer their sympathies that there was nothing that could be done now.
A week later the horse returned, but not alone. It brought with him a rare and valuable white mare. Soon thereafter, the man’s son decided to ride the white horse and took a serious fall, breaking his leg. The injury was so severe it left him with a permanent limp.
Once again the man’s neighbors sought to comfort him, but he expressed acceptance, saying what’s done is done. They thought he was crazy not to wallow in his misfortune and left him to himself.
Two years later, an enemy army invaded the region and forced all able-bodied men into military service. Because the man’s son was lame, he was not drafted.
Most of those conscripted died in battle, but the man was able to live out his days with his son by his side.
While the Democratic victories of the fall seemed to portend rough times for the Trump presidency, the opposite appears to be playing out.
Flush with victory, power and the voters’ apparent rebuke of Trump, the Democrats are spreading their wings and revealing a radical agenda that includes the Green New Deal (socialism in the Trojan horse of saving the planet) as well as late-term abortion, up to and even beyond the point of birth.
The idea of moving the United States away from the most successful capitalist economy in the world toward socialism — as advocated by self-described democratic socialists such as freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont — is very unpopular.
A Fox News poll released Feb. 13 showed 57 percent of respondents had a positive opinion of capitalism, while only 25 percent viewed socialism in a positive light.
Despite the majority of Americans being capitalism-loving people, the most prominent Democratic candidates for president have signed on to the Green New Deal resolution, including Sanders, Sen. Kamala Harris of California, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) February 25, 2019
The Green New Deal envisions massive government intervention into the economy in order to transition the United States to 100 percent renewable energy, including the goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2030.
To achieve the goal, the plan mandates the replacement of airplanes with high-speed trains, the rebuilding or retrofitting of all buildings in the country to new green standards and the elimination of all combustion-engine vehicles.
Additionally, the Green New Deal contains new government entitlement programs, including free universal health care and college education, government-guaranteed employment and paid family and medical leave.
The Green New Deal has been estimated to cost upward of $7 trillion per year. By way of comparison, the current federal budget for fiscal year 2019 is approximately $4.4 trillion.
According to a study co-authored by the former head of the Congressional Budget Office, the plan could cost as much as $93 trillion over the next 10 years, which works out to about $600,000 per every American household, Fox News reported.
Trump clearly understands that most of the nation’s citizens do not support socialism, and by contrast he can boast about policies that he and the Republican Party implemented that have led to robust economic growth and the lowest unemployment rate seen in decades, as well as the lowest ever recorded among African-, Hispanic- and Asian-Americans.
During his State of the Union address Feb. 5, the president differentiated himself from his would-be Democratic challengers’ big government vision, saying, “America was founded on liberty and independence, and not government coercion, domination and control. We are born free and we will stay free.
“Tonight, we renew our resolve that America will never be a socialist country.”
He added in a speech to Venezuelan Americans last week, “We know that socialism is not about justice, it’s not about equality, it’s not about lifting up the poor. Socialism is about one thing only: power for the ruling class.”
Beyond the Green New Deal, Democratic governors and state legislators also recently have brought the issue of late-term abortion to the fore, proposing and in some cases passing new laws that remove protections for the unborn.
On the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide in January, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the “Reproductive Health Act” into law.
The legislation permits abortions up to the time of birth for the broadly termed “health” of the mother and revokes the requirement for medical care for babies born alive after a failed abortion, according to the Liberty Counsel.
The law also decriminalizes killing an unborn child in the womb in cases not involving an abortion, such as when the mother is violently attacked.
Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam managed to make headlines while advocating for similar legislation regarding late-term abortion in his state, which ultimately was narrowly defeated by the legislature.
Northam said if a baby were born alive under the provisions of the proposed law, “the infant would be kept comfortable” while a discussion ensued between the mother and her physicians about whether to keep the child alive.
Virginia Gov defends infanticide.
“If a mother is in labor…the infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians & mother” pic.twitter.com/ztmgms7BKB
— LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) January 30, 2019
In response, Trump called for a federal ban on late-term abortions during his State of the Union.
“To defend the dignity of every person, I am asking Congress to pass legislation to prohibit the late-term abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s womb,” he said.
“Let us work together to build a culture that cherishes innocent life,” the president said. “And let us reaffirm a fundamental truth: All children — born and unborn — are made in the holy image of God.”
Consistent with that call, GOP Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska introduced the “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Act,” which was voted on earlier this week.
All the prominent 2020 Democratic hopefuls in the Senate voted down the measure, including Sanders, Harris, Booker, Gillibrand, Klobuchar and Warren.
Interestingly, there has been a significant shift in the public’s views on abortion following the moves at the state level to lessen or remove abortion restrictions.
A Marist poll released this week found equal numbers of Americans — 47 percent — identify themselves as pro-life or pro-choice.
That is the first time since 2009 the two sides of the abortion debate have been even in the public’s mind, according to Axios.
A similar poll last month found only 38 percent of respondents called themselves pro-life, while 55 percent described themselves as pro-choice — in other words, a 17-point swing in the favor of life.
Additionally, the survey found that 80 percent of Americans support abortion being limited to the first three months, which is a 5 percentage point increase from Marist’s January survey.
So thanks to the Democrats’ victories in 2018, Trump finds himself on the moral high ground as the defender of the American dream economically and the defender of innocent unborn children against the Democrats’ very unpopular leftist agenda.
In recent weeks, Trump has seen his popularity hit numbers not seen since the early days of his presidency, with his approval reaching as high as 52 percent.
It seems more than a coincidence that his numbers are on the rise as the Democrats’ agenda becomes more widely known.
While it is true the Republicans lost a prized stallion during last November’s elections, off in the distance, the steed can be seen returning with a beautiful mare of a second presidential term by his side.
The views expressed in this opinion article are those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by the owners of this website. If you are interested in contributing an Op-Ed to The Western Journal, you can learn about our submission guidelines and process here.
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