Republicans are struggling to identify an opponent to campaign against in this year’s midterms, a marked change from cycles built around a single hated figure.
Some of the Democrats’ most effective campaign targets are no longer in the picture. The emerging socialist wing has attracted attention, but it has not yet produced a national figure capable of absorbing the kind of resentment that drives Republican turnout.
The absence of a boogeyman forces Republicans to argue about governing rather than about fear, which is a terrain most of the party finds uncomfortable.
It also means a candidate list nobody can rally against. Historically that has not helped incumbents: low enthusiasm on both sides tends to produce low turnout rather than a decisive result.
