ONE Time When Adding is Subtracting

GOP Additions Mean Subtraction for Collins and Murkowski, and that may be a Plus

Republican senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski just got a little bit weaker.  When the Republican only had a 51 seat majority in the Senate, the women senators from Maine and Alaska held a lot of power and influence.  They knew their votes were crucial for some party line votes and that allowed them a lot of bargaining power with their GOP colleagues.

In the now finally ended mid-term elections, the GOP win in Mississippi gives the Republicans and 53 seat majority.  And now Collins and Murkowski will have to get used to less bargaining power.

That will help Donald Trump and the GOP when it comes to party line votes on bills and judicial appointments.  But don't cry for Collins or Murkowski just yet.  Collins upset a lot of people on the left and in the middle when she voted for (now Justice) Kavanaugh back in October.  She upset them enough they were starting to target he for defeat in her reelection bid two years from now. And Murkowski, who faces reelection in four years, didn't endear moderates or liberals to her with her vote to bring Kavanaugh's nomination to a vote or her present vote on the final question. 

But the wins for the GOP in Florida, Indiana, Missouri, and Mississippi just might save Collins and Murkowski with moderate voters in their state.  Their loss of power could free them to vote with Democrats in a losing cause for two years.  The folks that were seething mad at them just might be placated by two years of Collins and Murkowski returning to the middle.  While the GOP needed their votes, they could only benefit by selling their support to conservatives. With that benefit gone, they can spend two years or four years of mending fences in states that aren't all that conservative. Liberals can have time to get over the heat of their anger and moderates can have time to forgive the senators' temporary insanity in not being moderate.

What do you think?  Will Collins and Murkowski be able to use the GOP's bigger margin to reclaim some middle ground and make voters in their states more likely to reelect them? Leave me a comment explaining why or why not.