Rantz: Should the GOP create chaos in Dem Washington primary?

The Washington state primary actually matters this year. But should Republicans cause problems to help ensure President Donald Trump is re-elected? It’s a question many folks have asked me.

Democrats will play a crucial role in picking who the Democratic candidate will be. It explains why Bernie Sanders visited Tacoma for a rally, Michael Bloomberg opened three offices across the state, and Elizabeth Warren will stop in Seattle this weekend, though it’s mostly wishful thinking. Warren’s campaign is dead in the water.

Sanders is leading in the polls nationally, but establishment Democrats know he doesn’t stand a chance in a race against President Trump. The deeply unpopular idea of socialism won’t have an easy path with an electoral college strategy. That’s where Washington Republicans come in.

Causing chaos

The March 10 presidential primary in Washington allows voters to declare their party. You don’t have to be registered with the party in order to vote for the candidate. You simply must declare yourself a Democrat if you want your vote for a Democrat to count.

Given folks believe Sanders would be an easier win for Trump, a number of listeners have asked me if they should declare themselves a Democrat and vote for Sanders in the primary. Then, come general election time, they would vote for Trump. This strategy, they believe, might not just make it easier for Trump to win, but would waste precious DNC dollars.

But is it the right move?

The pro argument

Ethical concerns aside, voting for Sanders as a Republican could have DNC spend campaign dollars sending you mailers. It would be wasted money since you won’t end up voting for Sanders in the general election. In a race where every dollar is likely to count, this could put a damper on DNC spending.

A Sanders win in Washington will also force Bloomberg to spend even more cash on his candidacy, making him needlessly spend money ahead of a potential head to head with Trump. And the more money he spends, the more hated he becomes with the Bernie Bros and activist voters. If Bloomberg becomes the nominee, this result may have made it even less likely for Sanders’ supporters to eventually throw their support to Bloomberg.

While Sanders would likely win Washington in the general, the DNC has concerns that a socialist at the top of the ticket could hurt down-ballot races. It won’t hurt in Seattle, but if you’re a vulnerable Democrat up for re-election (Sharon Shewmake, Dave Paul, Dean Takko, for example), you don’t want to worry if a socialist will convince someone to vote against any candidate listed with a ‘D’ next to their name. So this benefits Republicans.

The con argument

By voting for a Democrat, you’re signaling to the Trump campaign that they shouldn’t come back to Washington for a campaign rally. Last year, the campaign signaled that was likely.

“I would say there’s a good chance … a good, high chance that President Trump will be back in Seattle in 2020,” Trump 2020 senior adviser John Pence told the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH.

Trump in Washington would be exciting: Progressives would lose their minds.

You’re also getting in the way of Trump momentum. While it’s unlikely that Trump would carry Washington, the campaign has shown renewed interest in the Pacific Northwest because data tells them to. If there is larger than usual interest in Trump from primary results, it helps fuel a media narrative that gives Trump some positive coverage.

Your declaration is public. While people won’t know who you voted for, people would be able to look up how you identified during the primary. Do you want that scarlet ‘D’ next to your name? And do you really want to be inundated with Democratic campaign mailers?

And finally: You don’t brush aside ethical concerns. You’re lying to impact an election and you should feel bad.

What the RNC says

Liz Harrington is the national spokesperson for the GOP. I asked her what she thought of the scheme. She’s not a fan of it.

“I say you vote for President Trump. I say you go out there and get energized and vote for the candidate,” Harrington told the Jason Rantz Show. “You actually want to continue to be the president because … I think Republicans, most of us in general, we say we don’t take voters for granted and we don’t write anything off.”

What I say

I don’t like the idea. I’d rather you vote honestly in the Washington primary and show your support for the candidate you like. If it’s Trump, you’ll give his campaign enough reason to campaign here. Then, just hope there is enough support in the state to deliver some positive momentum to the President in the media.

You also need to be careful what you wish for.

In 2016, many Democrats thought Trump had no shot at winning. Well, Trump ended up breaking the bleeding hearts of plenty of liberals. While I don’t think Sanders can win nationally, let’s not give him a convincing win in Washington. It’ll just fuel a narrative that he’s viable when he isn’t, and we know the media will jump on the result to help give Sanders a leg-up on Trump.

Listen to the Jason Rantz Show weekday afternoons from 3-6 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (or HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow @JasonRantz on Twitter.

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