Can Democrats reboot their old winning ways?
Yes, says Democratic campaign consultant Paul Begala, "Democrats can walk and chew gum at the same time."
By which he means, yes, the party can respond to its famously diverse constituencies while also reaching out to the working-class, middle-class and mostly white voters who have swung mostly to Republicans and, most recently, to President Donald Trump since at least the mid-1960s.
That new surge of outreach optimism among Democrats like Begala follows a surprisingly strong performance by Democrat Conor Lamb in Tuesday's special election in Pennsylvania 18th District, a district that Trump won by 20 points in 2016.
Although his victory margin was as thin as a coat of paint and he still could face a recount, his win added another dramatic victory to the three high profile statewide gains that Democrats scored in Virginia, New Jersey and Alabama last year.
Suddenly the Pennsylvania race that normally would be a nothingburger was transformed into a contest gained national importance. The race jumped from a national nothing-burger to a promising indication that the Democrats might have a pulse.
Republicans spent more than $8 million on television advertising for their nominee, state House member Rick Saccone -- twice as much as the Democrats did on their nominee. President Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and other Grand Old Party stars flew in to endorse Saccone -- and he still failed to score a victory.
Democrats appear to be doing things right again. Hopes look even brighter for the "blue wave" that Democrats hope will win back at least one house of Congress and in 2020 the White House.
But can the famously fractious liberal party pull it off without fighting too much among themselves?
The Lamb campaign reveals some new rules shaping up into a new campaign playbook for Dems who want to win:
--Nominate a uniter, not a divider. Lamb, a 33-year-old Marine Corps veteran and former federal prosecutor, combined a strong biography with a clear economic message of the sort that Democrats failed to deliver in 2016.
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