It has always been a mistake for politicians and pundits to underestimate the basic moderation of the American people.
Whenever either major party goes too far to the right or the left, the rule has always been that they are soon punished for it by the electorate. But Democrats who are cheering the prospect of extremists like Graham Platner and Abdul El-Sayed to represent their party in the U.S. Senate in contests in Maine and Michigan seem to be ignoring that lesson.

If there is any real constant in the ever-changing American electoral landscape, it is that a victory in which the Republicans or Democrats take control of both houses of Congress and the White House is usually followed by them absorbing a shellacking in the next midterm elections. That is generally because of the perception that the party in power always needs to be restrained by its opponents.

Gridlock is frustrating to anyone who wants to get things done, but it is a feature—and not a bug—of the American constitutional order with its checks and balances. If history is any judge, and current polls are remotely accurate, then that may be what happens to President Donald Trump and the GOP this November.