One of the reasons Republicans do so well in Congressional races is because most state legislatures are controlled by Republicans, and they draw the district lines. One of the reasons extreme Republicans win seats is because many of the gerrymandered districts are not competitive.
In New York, where the courts drew the boundaries after the Dems ignored state law mandating fair districts, Republicans were elected to Congress, but those Republicans are mostly moderates. They had to be in order to win Democratic voters.
In Pennsylvania where the courts also drew the Congressional district lines, we have moderate Dems and Republicans. Brian Fitzpatrick, Susan Wild, and Matt Cartwright all represent districts which could go either way. None of them are extremists. On the other hand, Congressman Meuser happens to represent a very Red district, and he is an election denier and a hard right ideological fanatic. (Also not very bright, but you don’t have to be when you are rich and can buy a seat.)
All of this is leading up to the encouraging news that the Dems now control the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. True, it is only by one vote, but it is a significant move up for the Dems. No more will the Republican-dominated legislature ram though proposed Constitutional amendments to bypass the governor.
Democrats in the past have not paid much attention to state legislative races. The party has finally realized just how important those races are. It’s about time.
A correction: in a post on the 14th about the attempt of Trump to sic the IRS on his enemies, I said the IRS didn't go along, just as it didn't when Nixon tried that. My friend Bill pointed out that James Comey and Andrew McCabe were extensively audited. That was no coincidence. It depresses me that even the IRS could be corrupted and evidently went along with Trump's wishes instead of telling him to go to hell.
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