About those coattails

Douthat worries about a Democratic supermajority. I worry too, but the Republican party deserves it.

Douthat thinks conservatives would "prefer" Hillary Clinton in charge of such a majority than Barack Obama. He's right if what you care about is Nixonian-style rightwingery.

But if you're a libertarian conservative who cares about things like civil marriage equality, civil liberties, dispensing with torture, and trying to restore America's "shining beacon" in the world, as Obama put it...then I don't see how you can want that statist Nixon-in-a-pantsuit.

Obviously Republican congresspeople would rather run against Hillary because she's familiar territory. It would be better for their electoral prospects. Republicans know how to fight the culture war with the Clintons; they've done it all before.

But this black guy with his funny-sounding name and soaring speeches about hope...that's getting weird. Where'd he come from? Terrorist! Risky! Be scared people: