Democrats Say They’re Suffering From ‘Pre-Midterms Nightmares’

This is an actual article by Politico. It’s titled, “Democrats traumatized by 2016 are having pre-midterms nightmares.”

It was weird for me to see that headline, just because I’ve been hearing nothing but “BLUUUUUE WAVE” for the past six months. Democrats were so confident. But now? Now they’re starting to realize that it’s probably not going to happen. There’s a legitimate chance they could take the House, but even if they do, are we considering that a “blue wave”? No. No we are not. When the other side EXPANDS its majority in the other chamber, it’s no longer a wave.

I don’t know what to think going into tomorrow. Polls were SO WRONG in 2016, so even though they’re predicting a Democratic House takeover, I’m not so sure. I’m not the only one feeling unsure. Democrats are freaking out.

Haunted by memories of 2016, liberals around the country are riven with anxiety in the campaign’s homestretch. They’re suspicious of favorable polls and making election night contingency plans in case their worst fears come true. Some report literal nightmares about a Democratic wipeout.

“We’re kind of just in the bed-wetting phase now,” said Democratic pollster John Anzalone, a Hillary Clinton campaign alumnus who spent election night 2016 in Clinton’s Manhattan war room.

Two years later, even thinking about the prospect of a repeat of that night’s letdown is still too much for many Democrats to bear.

“Stop it!” shouted Nadeam Elshami, a former chief of staff to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, when asked about that possibility. To be fair, the possibility has literally haunted his dreams.

They haunted his dreams? I didn’t like Obama, but his election day victories never haunted my dreams.

Elshami, who is now a Washington lobbyist, said that after staying up late reading campaign coverage and polls one recent night, he dreamed about watching tense House election results. His dream concluded with a Democratic House, but he doesn’t consider that a prophecy, and he said the pre-election knot in his stomach is tighter this year than ever before.

“He doesn’t consider that a prophecy.” HAHA…um…OK?

Anzalone said the shock of Donald Trump’s upset victory, which was missed by most forecasts, still hangs over many in the party. “There’s some PTSD,” he said.

I hate how people just throw that term around.

That is not an exaggeration. A study published last month in the Journal of American College Health found that one-quarter of college students experienced “clinically significant” symptoms of trauma from the 2016 election results.

One poll found that 61 percent of Democrats ages 15 to 34 “reported feeling anxious over the midterms.” But define “anxious.” Are we talking about losing sleep? Having nightmares? Throwing up? ‘Cause that’s kinda ridiculous. I’m curious and concerned, but I’m not actively ANXIOUS over the elections.

But pre-midterm stress syndrome isn’t afflicting only young people: A YouGov survey released Friday found that Democrats are 50 percent more likely than Republicans to report that they are “eating their feelings” ahead of the midterms. Other recent polling has registered high levels of stress among Democrats ahead of Tuesday’s elections.

Man. I’m not sensing that confidence anymore. Something shifted. It’s almost like it was a front this entire time.

All of our burning questions will be answered tomorrow, but I, for one, refuse to lose sleep over it.

h/t Politico