Manchin and Sinema Won’t Change Their Minds

Most us have encountered the old trope where a girl starts down a staircase, usually in the dark, unsure of what she’ll find. It’s an old strain of horror that relied on suspense. It had other elements too: If there were monsters, for instance, they were generally understood as things to be avoided. Characters went to some trouble to flee, and audiences rooted for them, knowing they were trying their best.

But genres change. Horror these days is different: It consists of (for example) watching people—specifically, Democratic politicians—march knowingly, slowly,...