A pattern is beginning to form and it is an alarming one. While part of me rejoices at the thought of Thom Tillis’s seat and now Rep. Don Bacon’s seat falling into the Democratic column, another part of me notices that the saner, bipartisan voices of the GOP are departing. This has been the case for years now, in the Era of Trump. You may remember a freshman congressman from Ohio, Anthony Gonzalez, who was one of only ten House Republicans who voted to impeach Donald Trump in 2021. He faced massive backlash from his party, MAGAs began to threaten him, and he got out of politics.
Gonzalez was a voice like what Thom Tillis describes, someone capable of “compromise, bipartisanship and independent thinking,” that is now being driven from the GOP. Or, people who think that way are simply becoming disgusted and leaving of their own volition, as looks to be the case with Don Bacon. And again, if these defections result in a Democrat getting the seat, wonderful. But the other side of that equation is that the quality of the Republican party as a whole diminishes that much more as reasonable people leave it and democracy itself is dependent on two functioning major parties. That is the entire premise of democracy in America. So bear that in mind as the rats continue to jump ship, as they will.
“After three decades in the Air Force and now going on one decade in Congress, I look forward to coming home in the evenings and being with my wife and seeing more of our adult children and eight grandchildren, who all live near my home. I’ve been married for 41 years, and I’d like to dedicate more time to my family, my church, and the Omaha community,” he continued. “I also want to continue advocating for a strong national security strategy and a strong alliance system with countries that share our love of democracy, free markets and the rule of law.”
I wonder how Bacon proposes to do that any better than he could do as a member of Congress? I concur totally with his priorities. National security, a strong alliance system (both economically and militarily) with countries that share our values, sounds good to me, too. And Donald Trump is diametrically opposed to the rule of law. That we have seen. And now another Republican who prioritizes that is leaving the party to the authoritarians who are only too happy to eliminate democracy if that means that they can stay in power.
Bacon’s decision to retire creates an open seat in one of the most competitive congressional districts in the country.
Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, which includes Omaha, was won by former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election and presents an opportunity for Democrats to pick up the “blue dot” district Bacon has held since winning it in 2016.
“The writing has been on the wall for months. Nebraskans are tired of the false promises that Republicans are trying to sell and they want real results,” said Madison Andrus, a spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Don Bacon’s decision to not seek reelection in 2026 is the latest vote of no-confidence for House Republicans and their electoral prospects. Next November, Nebraskans are going to elect a Democrat who will actually deliver for them.”
And that is to be devoutly wished. What worries me is the continued defection of reasonable minded, bipartisan people in the Republican party. Because all that does is roll out a red carpet for MAGA crazies. We would not have the likes of Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, Nancy Mace and other crazies without MAGA. Mace, possibly. She used to sing a more moderate tune. But the real incompetents of the political world, the pure MAGAs, are in the GOP because they’re following Trump’s pied piper.
“I wonder how Bacon proposes to do that any better than he could do as a member of Congress? ” Good question, But I imagine he’s been finding that as long as Trump has a stranglehold on the party, and therefore the House, he can’t do what he would be able to in office under normal circumstances. I really think this is a time when well-organized, highly motivated and politically savvy groups can do (and must do) a lot of heavy lifting, such as research and public communication, litigation, lobbying, etc. to counteract the Trumpists.
With each departure, the republican party descends another level into the asylum dungeon. Unless, of course, more rational voters in some of these reliably red areas of the country finally figure out that republicans have been lying to them all along about caring even a little about them. Some have already begun to rouse from their stupors, the big ugly bill might move the needle significantly. If it does, then comes the job of repairing all the damage done to the country as a result of the outcome of the 2024 election, a monumental task indeed.