There’s another special election for the House coming up fast on March 13, but even though it’s once again taking place in a dark red district, Republicans are freaking out—so much so that they’re sending Donald Trump out there today to prop up their utterly sad-sack candidate, state Rep. Rick Saccone, to whom Trump has pledged his “total support.”
Democrats, by contrast, couldn’t be more pleased with their nominee, former federal prosecutor and Marine veteran Conor Lamb, whose family is well-known for its longtime involvement in local politics. In the Marines, Lamb successfully prosecuted a fellow officer for trying to cover up a high-profile rape, and in the U.S. attorney’s office, he’s taken on the opioid epidemic. At 33, he’s also a fresh face, a tireless campaigner, and an ideal fit for his district, which is why Daily Kos is proud to endorse him.
Republicans shouldn’t be sweating at all, though. Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District is a heavily gerrymandered seat on the outskirts of Pittsburgh that voted for Trump by a wide 58-39 margin, and the special election here is one they should win without a second thought. (This is the seat, by the way, that became vacant when Republican Rep. Tim Murphy resigned in disgrace after it was revealed that he had pressured his mistress to have an abortion.) But thanks to the GOP’s lousy candidate, intense Democratic enthusiasm for Lamb, and widespread disgust with Trump, what should have been a snoozer has turned into a hotly competitive contest.
So much so that Republicans are sounding the alarm klaxons, just as they repeatedly had to do last year in similar races across the country. And just how panicked are they?
- Two outside groups have already spent $700,000 on TV ads to boost Saccone, and a third is about to spend much more.
- Some local Republicans are already looking for an alternative candidate for the regularly scheduled November election, meaning they’re planning for a Saccone loss!
- Saccone only raised $200,000 during all of 2017, which included a desultory Senate bid that he abandoned when this race came along, and even the White House’s own political director has “expressed displeasure” with Saccone’s fundraising.
- Faced with this unfolding mess, Republicans decided they’d have to parachute Mike Pence into the district next month.
- But that evidently wasn’t enough, because, as we noted above, they forced Trump to schlep into town today.
Will Trump really help, though? Certainly there are tons of Trump voters in this district, but as we’ve seen elsewhere (most recently in last month’s special Senate election in Alabama), the GOP base just isn’t turning out in big numbers these days. What’s more, there’s always the risk of major backlash whenever Trump rears his head. Indeed, as one Republican strategist recently observed, “There's enough out there with Saccone to make him so wacky that Republicans—particularly moderate Republicans in the suburban areas—say this isn’t my cup of tea.” That was a big part of the recipe for Doug Jones’s victory over Roy Moore, and Trump’s appearance only risks reminding these sorts of voters about all that wacky tea that Saccone enjoys brewing up.
Make no mistake: A victory here would still be a major upset—but it’s definitely possible. And not only would a win reduce the number of seats Democrats need to take back the House from 24 to 23, it would send shockwaves through the political world and send Republicans into a full-blown meltdown. Wouldn’t you like to help make that happen?
You can! Donate $3 today to Conor Lamb to help him beat Trump stooge Rick Saccone, and turn western Pennsylvania blue!
