I agree, but I don’t think a January (losing) vote from a lame-duck Congress will do this.
I think you're wrong. The radical wing of the republican party lost dozens of votes where they tried to repeal obamacare, and the fact that they were fighting so ferociously created an energy among their base that eventually led to that wing of the party winning the presidency with Trump.
the fact that they were fighting so ferociously created an energy among their base that eventually led to that wing of the party winning the presidency with Trump
Was it the failed votes that did this, or was it the astroturf cash, the unrelenting media campaign, and decades of cultivating blind anti-government sentiment?
I think you're wrong. The radical wing of the republican party lost dozens of votes where they tried to repeal obamacare, and the fact that they were fighting so ferociously created an energy among their base that eventually led to that wing of the party winning the presidency with Trump.
Was it the failed votes that did this, or was it the astroturf cash, the unrelenting media campaign, and decades of cultivating blind anti-government sentiment?
Those things certainly had effect. I'm not saying the situation is identical, I'm saying they're similar in an essential component.