Mitch McConnell, whose feelings are now hurt

It’s fair to say that Republicans are much better at going on offense against Democrats than vice-versa. Therefore, it’s quite refreshing to see Democrats turning the tables on Republicans for once. This time, it’s Republican U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell who has fallen prey to Democratic tarring and feathering efforts. By most accounts, these efforts are working, and McConnell’s feelings are hurt.

The Democratic efforts to frame McConnell as unpatriotic, and even a tool of a foreign power, stem from McConnell’s refusal to act on bills introduced in the Senate to protect the U.S. election system from further Russian interference. Recall that Russia’s interference in the 2016 elections is undisputed by the U.S. intelligence community, as well as by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle with access to the relevant information. Just a few days ago, Special Counsel Robert Mueller, specifically tasked with investigating such Russian wrongdoing, confirmed again that Russia interfered in our 2016 elections and “they’re doing it as we sit here.” As a result, lawmakers have introduced bills to protect our elections and voting system against the type of cyber warfare and hacking that Russia committed against America. But McConnell keeps blocking the bills.

Russia’s Kremlin, home to Donald Trump’s friends and America’s enemies.

As we approach the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, it’s a good reminder that America’s space program began as a response to Russian military activity. Specifically, the Soviet Union’s 1957 launch of the Sputnik satellite set off a dramatic reaction to what was viewed as the Soviet militarization of space, with rocket technology that could be used to launch nuclear weapons. The United States, led by the Democratic-majority U.S. Senate and Republican President Dwight Eisenhower, soon tasked the Senate Preparedness Subcommittee (which had been established in 1950 to deal with the then-looming crisis in Korea) with addressing the Soviet military threat from space, and created NASA. Within less than four months of the Sputnik launch, the U.S. launched its own satellite into orbit, and the “Space Race” was on. Eventually, America surpassed the U.S.S.R. by embarking on the Apollo program that led to the moon landing. The full-scale national effort of the Apollo program galvanized America to such an extent that the term “Apollo program” is now a figure of speech that means a large coordinated effort, involving scientists and deep governmental resources, to solve a huge challenge (such as climate change.)

The issue of “preparedness” in the face of a Russian threat is something that Democrats should be using now to attack Donald Trump and the Republicans. Specifically, Russia attacked our democracy in the 2016 elections. Russia’s attacks have been termed “cyber warfare,” and even Republican Dick Cheney has said that Russia’s attacks “could be considered an act of war.” In the internet age, Russia’s attacks on America arguably are as serious as the attacks on the United States at Pearl Harbor or on September 11, 2001. However, Donald Trump and many Republicans are refusing to defend us against this threat.