How Republicans win
In my post, Do Trumpers want to lose, reader xrayboy left this comment:
How much do you think DeSantis would accomplish in the DC swamp versus Tallahassee. Comparing accomplishments in Florida to getting something done in DC is an apples to oranges thing.
I'll answer. Democrats don't win elections, Republicans lose them. People need motivation to vote Republican. Hating the Democrat has been shown time and time again not to be a sufficient motivating factor. Republicans in large numbers and independents do not go and vote for useless do-nothing Republicans. When Republicans accomplish Republican victories, Republicans and independents vote for Republicans. We're fair weather fans, we support our team when we win. DeSantis increased the size of the Republican majority in the Florida legislature and the number of Republican voters by getting victories. The more Republicans do Republican things, the more Republicans win elections. Trump had shit leadership in DC. He was terrible at rallying legislators to his side. DeSantis would have started weak, but if he could accomplish some victories, doing what he did in Florida, it would snowball into gaining a majority in the legislature and accomplishing more things. Trump was a boss but DeSantis is a true political leader, and that difference is why I think DeSantis would have been much more politically effective than Trump.