Opinion
Trump’s impact on down ballot races
By Zack Baum ’19
October 27, 2016
Tags opinion
Faced with a fairly mediocre choice for President, many Americans are considering skipping the polls this election. Progressives, largely disaffected Bernie Sanders supporters, seem among the most likely to pass on pro-establishment Clinton. What makes this sentiment most unfortunate are the implications of this election reaching far beyond our next president. While Clinton is a less than palatable alternative for many, Trump’s stressing of tensions in America and propensity to embarrass us abroad are developing into a rift in the Republican Party resulting from his continued exposure. This rift could cost the GOP much more than the presidency.
Nothing is more indicative of this issue than the actions of Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, who recently announced he will abandon the Trump Campaign in order to focus on preserving Republican majorities in Congress. Ryan is worried that a conflict of interest will arise in voters. Many establishment Republicans have renounced support from Trump, creating a deep divide in the GOP between those who support the presidential nominee and those who do not. The fear encompasses the idea that a voting civil war of sorts will result among Republican voters, with Trump supporters refusing to vote for Republican incumbents whom Mr. Trump denounced for refusing to support him.
Ryan commented on one chief implication of losing control of the Senate: the appointment of Bernie Sanders to the position of Senate Budget Committee Chairman. This would give Sanders access to a nearly $3 trillion war chest, providing him the platform and authority on which to kick start many of his democratic-socialist policies. Mr. Ryan inadvertently motivated thousands of disaffected Bernie supporters with this statement, arguably providing a reigniting spark to his political revolution.
There is also the issue of Clinton entering the White House, as she is likely to do at this point considering. Trump’s floundering campaign, with a Democratic Party-controlled Congress. Beyond the proliferation of Democratic Party policies and the realization of the Party’s platform, this situation could see the Republican’s current policy of blocking President Obama’s Supreme Court nomination backfire. Given this opportunity, Clinton could appoint a justice far more left wing than Merrick Garland, President Obama’s centrist choice partially meant to appease Republicans.
Considering these destructive effects of the Trump campaign on the GOP, down ballot elections dictating the control of Congress will be the true deciding factor regarding the historical implications of this election.