The Democrats have one person to thank for their revival: Trump

He didn't kill the Democratic Party. He's making it much, much stronger.

President Trump.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

One great election day does not a revived party make, but Democrats have to be feeling pretty darn good right now. And there's one man they have to thank for the reversal of their party's fortunes: Donald J. Trump.

Imagine if Hillary Clinton had managed to secure an Electoral College victory to go along with her popular vote win a year ago. Had that happened, Ed Gillespie would probably be picking out furniture for the Virginia governor's mansion, and the state's Republicans would have reinforced their hold on the legislature. All over the country, conservatives consumed with rage at a Clinton presidency would be creating the second coming of the Tea Party, organizing protests, signing up volunteers, registering voters, and preparing for what would likely be a Republican wave election in 2018.

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Paul Waldman

Paul Waldman is a senior writer with The American Prospect magazine and a blogger for The Washington Post. His writing has appeared in dozens of newspapers, magazines, and web sites, and he is the author or co-author of four books on media and politics.