If the Democrats lose the upcoming midterm elections, our path out of competitive authoritarianism gets a lot longer, or disappears altogether. The political winds are at the Democrats’ backs, but the structure of our electoral system cuts against them. It could come down to a few close races. So the party is—very understandably—anxious to get its strategy right and not to leave gettable votes on the table.

And many centrist think tanks, columnists, and pundits have a pitch for an easy way to win more support: “Moderate” on trans rights.