What happens when the Democrats are powerless, and the political spectrum is effectively limited to Reactionaries and PBPs? That’s the question I raised about Texas late in 2019. The answer to the question tells us a great deal about the condition of the GOP on a national level.
In 2019, the conflict between the two factions–one supporting infrastructure spending, the other bathroom bills–seemed to have reached a stalemate. That is no longer true. The Reactionaries have gained complete control of the legislative process, and every plausible candidate for high state and federal office is running as far to the right as he reasonably can. As a result, we have an absurdly constructed abortion law relying totally on private enforcement, proposed new (and, based on the 2020 election results, completely unnecessary) legislation to suppress minority votes, and an attempt by the state to complete the border wall on its own.
This, of course, mirrors the state of the GOP nationally. Trump is above criticism, the riot was a peaceful event involving patriotic Americans, Biden is an illegitimate president, and the biggest civil rights struggle in this country involves the rights of people who refuse to be vaccinated. If you don’t agree with these propositions, you had better keep your mouth shut, or else you’ll wind up like Liz Cheney.