With the November midterms approaching, a stark warning is being issued to Republican voters: sit this one out, and you may hand control of Congress to a Democratic Party that has been seized by its most radical elements. That’s the argument from Joseph Ford Cotto in a recent American Thinker op-ed, which paints the election as a decisive battle between the progress of the Trump administration and a left-wing insurgency it says is bent on dismantling American institutions.
Cotto, a political commentator and host of News Sight, writes that the stakes go far beyond the usual partisan squabbles. If Democrats take the House, the Senate, or both, he argues, they will spend the next two years trying to derail the Trump administration and sabotage Republican prospects in 2028. The piece urges conservative voters to treat the election as a referendum on whether the country continues on its current path or falls into what it describes as “malicious weakness and willful disorder.”
Democrats’ Radical Turn
The op-ed points to recent votes as evidence of a party transformed. Just days ago, 192 House Democrats voted against a resolution denouncing socialism and the platform of the Democratic Socialists of America, following an earlier vote in which nearly 100 House Democrats refused to condemn socialism. Cotto contends these votes confirm that the radical left now controls the party, pushing for open borders, defunded police, abolished prisons, and taxpayer benefits for undocumented immigrants.
The piece also highlights Democratic opposition to key Republican initiatives. According to Cotto, every Democrat in Congress voted against the largest tax cut in American history, including provisions to end taxes on tips, overtime, and Social Security, as well as expanding child-care credits. He claims Democrats are now working to repeal those cuts, which he says power the economy.
On national security, Cotto notes that 53 Democrats voted against declaring Iran a state sponsor of terrorism, a move he contrasts with President Trump’s confrontational stance toward a regime that chants “Death to America.” He also accuses Democrats of blocking the Stop Insider Trading Act and opposing measures to require hospitals to post prices.
Stopping the Far-Left Agenda
The op-ed asserts that Democrats have unanimously opposed election integrity bills like the SAVE AMERICA Act, which would require proof of citizenship and photo ID to vote—measures that, Cotto notes, a majority of Americans support. He also criticizes Democratic opposition to codifying protections for women’s and girls’ sports, as well as over 200 Democrats voting against stopping federal Medicaid funds for transgender treatments on minors.
Cotto highlights the Laken Riley Act, named after a Georgia nursing student murdered by an undocumented immigrant released under the Biden-Harris administration. Nearly 200 Democrats voted against the bill, which requires detention and deportation of criminal undocumented immigrants. He argues such votes put violent offenders ahead of American safety.
The piece also points to two government shutdowns, including a 43-day closure, which Democrats allegedly used to push for free health care for undocumented immigrants and to starve the Department of Homeland Security. Primary results this year, Cotto writes, show how far the party has moved, with candidates in New York calling for abolishing prisons, ICE, and borders, and backing citizenship and voting rights for undocumented immigrants.
The High Cost of Staying Home
Cotto warns that the Democratic Socialists of America, which he says leads the insurgent left, openly demands the abolition of the Senate, the presidency, and the Supreme Court—a program to tear down the constitutional order. Meanwhile, polling cited in the op-ed shows that 66% of voters, including 51% of Democrats, see communists as a threat, and 78% prefer free enterprise to socialism. Yet, he argues, incumbent Democrats keep moving left, with House Leader Hakeem Jeffries calling the Supreme Court a “disgrace” and key caucus chairs introducing resolutions to expand the Court.
Looking ahead, Cotto insists that if Democrats take Congress, they will not simply check Trump—they will try to repeal tax cuts, reopen the border, protect criminal undocumented immigrants, pack the judiciary, and starve immigration law enforcement. The op-ed concludes with a direct appeal to Republican voters: show up, vote, and keep the House and Senate out of Democratic hands. “Republican voters who stay home in November will not be sitting out a normal election,” Cotto writes. “They will be choosing America-last.”
Whether one agrees with every characterization, the piece underscores the intensity of the political divide heading into the midterms, framing the election as a choice between two very different futures for the country.
Source: www.americanthinker.com — https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2026/09/stay-home-elect-socialists/