Democrats can dream of a 50-state strategy, per Howard Dean, but it’s only a dream. The South, once the exclusive preserve of Democrats and yellow dogs, is almost solid again, and this time Democrats and yellow dogs have been evicted and the region is red and safely Republican. The Rust Belt, once a Democratic stronghold, voted for Donald Trump, and might again. Bernie Sanders thinks he can fix all that by making the nation’s prison population solid for the Democrats….

“If somebody commits a serious crime, sexual assault, murder, they’re going to be punished,” Mr. Sanders said. “They may be in jail 10 years, 20 years, 50 years, their whole life. That’s what happens when you commit a serious crime. But I think the right to vote is inherent to our democracy. Yes, even for terrible people, because once you start chipping away you’re running down a slippery slope. I believe even if they are in jail, they’re paying the price to society, that should not take away their inherent American right to participate in our democracy.”

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An open mind is usually a good thing, but there’s not much value in a mind so open that your brains fall out. The Sanders proposal was too much for some of the other Democrats in the race for the Democratic nomination. Sen. Kamala Harris of California wanted to sound liberal and forward looking and all, but she said she would settle for “a conversation” about it. After that, maybe they could appoint a committee to study it and soon the idea would go away. Pete Buttigieg, the shrewd boy mayor of South Bend, who sometimes says common-sensical things, shunned the idea out of hand. Only Bernie gave the notion a whole-hearted endorsement. So far….

(Excerpted from Tammy Bruce for  The Washington Times)