President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the debt ceiling during an event in the State Dining Room of the White House, Monday, Oct. 4 in Washington. A California man was arrested in Iowa last week as he was traveling to Washington D.C., after he was found with a "hit list" featuring Biden, former presidents and Dr. Anthony Fauci. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
MSNBC Opinion Columnist Michael Cohen warned that Democrats are headed for a "bloodbath" in the midterm elections, so they "might as well" continue to "pass their agenda" regardless of the "political backlash."
Cohen opened his MSNBC column saying, "I have some bad news for Democrats: As bad as things seem now, they’re almost certainly going to get worse."
He began by pointing to record-high inflation: "The Labor Department released its latest Consumer Price Index report this week, and the numbers are ugly. Inflation hit 8.5 percent — the fastest one-year surge in prices since Ronald Reagan’s first year as president."
Cohen stressed, "It’s precisely the kind of news that will compound the Democrats’ political woes in November, which already looked dire."
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Though Cohen didn’t advise Dems to change their strategy.
A gas pump displays current fuel prices, along with a sticker of President Joe Biden, at a gas station in Arlington, Virginia, on March 16, 2022. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
"Rather than fight the prevailing political winds, Democrats would be better off acknowledging the reality that the midterm elections are going to be a bloodbath and focus instead on accomplishing as much as possible before then — the politics be damned," he prescribed.
Cohen then recommended that Democrats press on anyway. "With the political situation looking increasingly bleak, Democrats have only one real option: pass their agenda."
"While there may be some political upside, the bigger and more important reason is that it's the right thing to do. After all, it's the reason voters elected them in November 2020," he added.
Cohen advised Biden and Democrats pursue their policies regardless of controversy, including "a litany of executive actions Biden could take to enact parts of his stalled agenda." He suggested ending drilling on federal lands, declaring a climate emergency, tearing down Trump's wall, seizing prescription drug patent licenses, and canceling student debt.
Voters cast their ballots early for the midterm elections at the Government & Judicial Center in Noblesville, Ind., Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
"All these measures would be controversial — and likely spark a political backlash. Some may not survive judicial review or could be overturned by a future Congress. But at this point in Biden’s presidency, his back is to the wall, and his dreams of having an FDR-like presidency are fading away the closer we get to November."
Cohen urged BIden to carry on, "He might as well try to achieve what he can now — and do so before Election Day in the fleeting hope that it might minimize his party’s midterm losses."
Internet organizations such as MSNBC.com report from the Republican National Convention media area. (Photo by Kim Kulish/Corbis via Getty Images)
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"But Democrats would also help themselves by remembering why most of them ran for office and got elected in the first place: to get things done," he said. "If they aren’t passing legislation and trying to lower drug prices, increase access to health care, save the planet from the ravages of climate change, raise families out of poverty or help the middle class, then what is the point of electing Democrats in the first place?"
Cohen concluded, "Spending the next 6½ months pushing a progressive policy agenda may not save the party come November, but sometimes there are bigger considerations than just the next election. And it’s not as if they have much hope anyway."
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