Made by History

Perspective

Harassing the Biden bus could backfire on Republicans

In a close election, the backlash against boorish behavior can make an impact

By Kyle Longley

Kyle Longley is the director of the War and Society Program at Chapman University and author of "LBJ’s 1968: Power, Politics, and the Presidency in America’s Year of Upheaval."

November 2, 2020 at 3:00 a.m. PST

On Friday, a swarm of trucks harassed a Biden-Harris bus on Interstate 35 in Texas as it headed to Pflugerville, just north of the state capital. Armed supporters of President Trump had already shown up to disrupt a gathering in Austin and continued following the bus as it departed.

As the bus traveled up the interstate, the trucks pulled up and boxed it in, slowing traffic. Ultimately, a vehicle rammed a Biden volunteer’s car. In response, the Democrats decided to cancel the next gathering to avoid the escalating violence.

In some ways, the Trump supporters won the day but probably lost the battle. The president and the Texas Republican Party egged them on, but the majority of Americans probably viewed the act with disgust.

Sixty years earlier, Republicans in Texas also overstepped the lines of accepted civility and helped the Democrats. It unfolded just up the road from Pflugerville in Dallas on Nov. 4, 1960.