Adrastos has it pretty much covered, just to add a few thoughts of my own, this whole sorry scenario was brought about in no small measure by a toxic political atmosphere and degree of journalistic malpractice that, for lack of a better term, both-sided to the extent Trump could barely eke out a win.

But now we have our “GOP hero” (warning: that’s a Newsbusters link…apologies)..

And that’s kind of the point and problem: Republicans get lauded with praise for, what? Pointing out the painfully obvious point that Donald Trump is an idiot and an asshole? Hell, Trump is merely the distilled essence of what’s been boiling in the GOP cauldron since at least the late 50s/early 60s, when movement wingers labeled Eisenhower a squish. Nixon was Trump with intellect. Reagan was Trump with veneer/Teflon (aided and abetted by an exceeding friendly press). Bush Junior was Trump with a twang. Palin? Trump’s John the Baptist.

Meanwhile, Democrats have for decades now been pretty much forced to apologize for being Democrats, even when they’re about as DLC as it gets (e.g., Hillary Clinton). Even as Obama bent over backwards to meet the GOP quite a bit more than halfway, the sensible people/conventional wisdom insisted he wasn’t going far enough (this despite the near disastrous Grand Bargain and his expressed willingness to trade tort reform for GOP support of the AEI/Romneycare inspired  ACA).

Ocasio-Cortez and Pressley are hopeful  signs that Democrats are tired of being told by conventional wisdom to be Republican-lite, particularly when it both gets us nowhere AND gives us Donald Trump…an administration so clearly rancid it requires desperate measures, and inspires anonymous excuse makers.

The first step in removing the orange stain is the midterms.