Bernie Sanders is back in the saddle. Had Jon Ossoff, a centrist Democrat, won the special congressional election in Georgia on Tuesday, the party’s Clintonite wing would have been the real victor. Mr Ossoff promised to “make Trump furious”. Instead he made him happy. The Democrats keep chalking up moral victories against Donald Trump. But they have yet to achieve a single win. What might have been dismissed as the result of a one-off election will tilt the battle for control of a confused — and leaderless — party.
Its biggest blow, of course, was Hillary Clinton’s defeat last November. Her backers poured money into the Georgia race, which was the most expensive in US history. But money is no substitute for passion. A win for Mr Ossoff would have signalled that the pragmatic, Emmanuel Macron, wing of the party could deliver results. It would also have emboldened Republicans to detach from Mr Trump. It may even have killed off his healthcare reform, which now looks likelier to pass into law. In spite of all that has happened, Mr Trump is still winning elections.
So who can stop him? If it is not the Macron Democrats, then it will be the Jeremy Corbyn types. Obstacles keep being removed from their path. Their chief ally is Mr Trump himself. Having blown up the Republican party, the US president is doing the same to the Democrats. He generates as much energy from opponents as ardent loyalty from his base. The Democratic establishment remains intact and ready for combustion. Its defeat may well be the next great act in the Trumpian remake of US politics.