Don’t expect President Trump to make nice with red state Democrats anytime soon. They need him and his second Supreme Court nominee more than he needs them.
A new poll by the conservative Judicial Crisis Network, first obtained by Politico, shows that a majority of voters in Indiana, North Dakota, and West Virginia want their Democratic senator to vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh. This puts Sens. Joe Donnelly, Heidi Heitkamp, and Joe Manchin in a tight spot.
Each faces a tough re-election and each has more to gain by backing Kavanaugh than Trump has to lose by attacking them.
Look at the numbers. The Judicial Crisis Network found that 46 percent of voters in Indiana want the nominee confirmed, 60 percent in North Dakota, and 51 percent in West Virginia. Now consider the campaign. Trump has rallied against each, knocking them as a disappointment at one time or another. No matter how hard he knocks them, they know they gain more by voting for than against Kavanaugh.
All three voted for Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and all three will probably do the same for this nominee. Even if they don’t, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., already has the votes for confirmation, considering the fact that Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, all but gave the green light and Vice President Mike Pence stands by to break a potential 50-50 tie.
And so Trump won’t be nice to those red state Democrats because those red state Democrats don’t have anything that valuable for him in return.
[Also read: Senate Judiciary Dems push GOP to delay Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing]
