Opinion: Democrats are fighting for their political lives

Editor’s Note: Julian Zelizer, a CNN political analyst, is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University and author of the book, “Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party.” Follow him on Twitter @julianzelizer. And things could get even worse, with the potential for the global transport system to collapse due in part to a shortage of workers, the International Chamber of Shipping and other industry groups warned in an open letter to heads of state attending the United Nations General Assembly Wednesday. Julian Zelizer CNN The spread of the Delta variant has devastated parts of the United States, shattering hopes that the vaccine rollout would herald a swift economic recovery this summer. In 1938, President Franklin Roosevelt’s Democratic Party suffered a major loss after the economy slid into what his opponents dubbed the “Roosevelt Recession.” In 1982, President Ronald Reagan experienced sobering midterm results when a shaky economy and rising unemployment helped drive up the size of the Democratic majority in the House. The President, who spent many months waiting for Americans to get vaccinated while several Republican governors flouted public health guidance, is now taking a more aggressive stance when it comes to vaccine mandates.