McConnell could well hand the gavel over ― not to some Tea Party Republican backed by Bannon, but to Democratic leader Chuck Schumer. The serial insults of Trump and Bannon also induced Arizona senator Jeff Flake to forego re-election (as a Republican anyway.) Likewise in nearby Nevada, Trump and Bannon have been savaging the incumbent, Sen. Dean Heller, as insufficiently radical right, and disloyal to Trump. But Tuesday’s sweep showed that Democratic candidates and energized voters could put aside differences on behalf of the larger cause. Even without Steve Bannon pouring oil on the flames, the Republican Party would be seriously split between Trump-loyalist factions and ordinary conservatives who are quite sick of Trump.

Source: Huffington Post November 13, 2017 03:11 UTC