Strawberry Fields Forever is one of many Beatles hits, a nostalgic remembrance of a piece of land in Liverpool near where John Lennon grew up. A memorable bit of lyric, “Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see” reflects denial or lack of awareness of reality, because “nothing is real, and nothing to get hung about.”

After this past week’s elections, by both results and Democrat reactions to the results, they appear to be in a state of denial, with eyes closed, misunderstanding the will of the voters and most Americans, doubling down on their policies and prescriptions for America.

Glenn Youngkin celebrates on election night (YouTube screengrab)

Start with critical race theory, one of the major issues in school board elections nationwide and in the Virginia gubernatorial race. Former Bush Republican, now a Trump-hating liberal Democrat, MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace declared that critical race theory “isn’t real.”

Her strawberry fields analysis of a Republican sweep in Virginia, the GOP winning the governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general positions was, "So, I think that the real ominous thing, is that critical race theory, which isn’t real, turned the suburbs 15 points to the Trump-insurrection-endorsed Republican."

Maybe in the cocooned studios of MSNBC, critical race theory is some QAnon or white supremacist conspiracy theory but, to voters, it was quite real, and concerning.

If critical race theory is not real, someone should tell Amazon as they offer numerous books on the subject, in education and mathematics, how to teach it in school and how to respond to “microaggressions,” meaning any viewpoint that challenges the CRT agenda.

Defeated gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe told fellow Democrat Chuck Todd shortly before the election that critical race theory has "never been taught" in the state’s public schools and that the fight to ban the theory from school curricula is a "racist dog whistle." McAuliffe also claimed that eventual gubernatorial victor Glenn Youngkin “wants to ban critical race theory.”

Chuck Todd missed the obvious follow-up question of why something that doesn’t exist or isn’t taught would need to be banned? Fortunately, Virginia voters asked this question and gave their answer at the ballot box.

MSNBC’s homophobic host Joy Reid also walked through the strawberry fields, oblivious to the education concerns of voters in Virginia and elsewhere, who objected to McAuliffe’s pre-election comment, “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.” To the left, it’s always about race, even when it isn’t. Fox News reported, “MSNBC's Joy Reid called the issue of education a ‘code’ for White parents who don't want their children to be taught about race during her coverage of the Virginia gubernatorial election Tuesday.”

Education was indeed an important issue for Virginia voters, the second most popular issue behind the economy. While blacks overwhelmingly voted for the Democrat, Hispanics voted for the Republican by a 12 point margin, throwing cold water on the dog-whistle racism theory of Democrat pundits.

Those racist Virginia voters also elected Winsome Sears as Virginia’s first woman of color lieutenant governor. Not surprisingly, USA Today chose to ignore this historic milestone as she was the wrong type of black for their tastes.

The real explanation eludes so many in the media, living easily with eyes closed. While calling anyone who votes Republican a racist, White supremacist, insurrectionist, they are oblivious to the real problems facing America and her people.

The Southern border is wide open with anyone from anywhere in the world free to live large in America at US taxpayer expense. President Biden wants to throw cash, Oprah style, to the tune of $450K each at parent and child illegal migrants separated at the border.

Meanwhile, the median net worth of all Americans, those working hard, playing by the rules, and voting, is $122K, only a quarter of the Biden created-net worth of those here illegally, those not playing by the rules, instead being rewarded by an administration that appears to loathe hard-working Americans.

Maybe Americans are fearful of inflation, watching the cost of a tank of fuel or cart of groceries steadily ticking upward while their wages remain flat. Many Americans are waiting for parts for their cars, a home repair, or even Christmas presents, delayed, sitting on a container ship in the Pacific because environmental and labor rules are turning America into Venezuela.

Others are fed up with crime in their cities and neighborhoods, ignored by local and national law enforcement. Rather than keeping America safe, they are fomenting phony protests and so-called insurrections, taking political prisoners, and focusing their attention on parents to have the gall to speak up and hold their local school board responsible for what their children are learning in school.

Aside from Virginia, the pushback is loud and clear. Minneapolis residents soundly rejected replacing the city’s police department with a “department of public safety” after watching their city burn in the wake of the George Floyd death.

A New Jersey truck driver spent $153 unseating the longest-running  New Jersey state senate president. A teacher who “peacefully and patriotically” protested at the US Capitol on January 6, who subsequently resigned from his teaching position, won a school board seat in Massachusetts.

The Washington Post may choose to misunderstand and believe this is all post-Donald Trump, his growing irrelevance having no effect on the election. Good luck with that. The former president’s four endorsed candidates in Tuesday’s elections all won.

Democrats can keep up their charade, living with eyes closed, misunderstanding all they see, as they confidently head for the cliffs of 2022 and 2024. For once, Vice President Kamala Harris may be right, “What happens in Virginia will in large part determine what happens in 2022, 2024 and on.”

It’s not time for Republicans to get cocky but know that their strategy, at least as of this week, is working. Keep it up and let the Democrats wander in the strawberry fields forever.

Brian C Joondeph, MD, is a physician and writer. On Twitter as @retinaldoctor.

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