In the ferocious struggle for Senate control, desperate Democrats count on candidates in six key races whose chief asset involves famous fathers: Michelle Nunn in Georgia, Alison Lundergan Grimes in Kentucky, Mark Pryor in Arkansas, Nick Begich in Alaska, Mary Landrieu in Louisana and Mark Udall in Colorado are all the children of political icons, trying to mask their own elitist, Obama-era liberalism with frequent references to their more moderate, earthy and populist parents.
It’s no coincidence that the two most prominent Democratic governors on the 2014 ballot—Andrew Cuomo of New York and Jerry Brown of California—are also sons of popular prior governors. The Democratic reliance on political dynasties—very much including the Kennedys and the Clintons—is an attempt to mask present failures with nostalgic appeals to past glories.
Republicans should avoid that temptation.