Minority Rules

As to how Republicans control Congress even though more people vote Democrat . . .

. . . many people now know this was the brainchild of former insurance industry lobbyist Chris Jankowski.

I’ve previously linked to Ratf*cked, the book that tells the tale. (In 2012, Democrats got 84,000 more votes than Republicans in Pennsylvania’s Congressional races — yet only 5 of the 18 seats. Republicans, with fewer voters wanting them in office, got 13.)

But now comes this must-listen Planet Money podcast that tells the tale even more vividly, and with Jankowski’s own, unapologetic voice.

(Sure, they torpedoed a Maine legislator’s race by saying he voted to ban July 4th fireworks when in fact he was the only one who didn’t. But is lying even an issue for Republicans any more?)

Jankowski’s website offers to “stack the deck in your favor” and notes that he helped thwart President Obama’s nomination to fill the Scalia vacancy on the Supreme Court. (The rationale? It wasn’t enough to see whom the people favored in 2008 and 2012; it was only fair to wait to see who they favored in 2016. Which was the Democrat by millions of votes, despite Putin’s best efforts. But that still wasn’t enough to get Merrick Garland his seat on the Court.)

As to our minority-elected President . . .

. . . forget Democrats; listen to Republicans:

Colin Powell: Trump is “a national disgrace and an international pariah.”

Marco Rubio: “A dangerous con man.”

Carly Fiorina: “A man who seems to only feel big when he’s trying to make other people feel small.”

Bobby Jindal: “An unserious and unstable narcissist.”

Mitt Romney: “A phony . . . playing the American public for suckers.”

Ted Cruz: “A pathological liar [and a] narcissist.”

Karl Rove: “A complete idiot . . . graceless and divisive.”

Lindsey Graham: “A race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot . . . undercutting everything we stand for.”

51 Former GOP National Security Officials: “Not qualified . . . dangerous.”

And this was before they — and we, and our allies around the world — found out how much worse he would be than they imagined.