There is a new attitude prevalent among Republicans who are ascendant following President Joe Biden’s troubled first year in office: unafraid of the media, solicitous of the base, assertive about conservative priorities, and combative with the Left, whether in the form of the "Squad" or woke capitalism. The stiffening of the Republican spine is fueling optimism within the party for the midterm elections and beyond.Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, elected last year in part based on parents’ outrage at their children being taught critical race theory in the public schools (when they were open), promptly revamped the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. He tapped Angela Sailor of the conservative Heritage Foundation, a determined CRT foe, to lead the office, which he also sought to rename the Office of Diversity, Opportunity, and Inclusion.Youngkin also signed anti-CRT executive orders and rejected neighboring Washington, D.C.’s mandate-centric strategy of dealing with COVID-19. CNN’s Jim Acosta blasted Virginia as a “police state.” There was incredulity that Youngkin was governing as he had campaigned.Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is perhaps the most prominent example of this trend. He withstood a full-scale media assault on his approach to the pandemic, which concentrated on the vulnerable while leaving much of the rest of the state open. Every time a COVID-19 wave hit Florida, the headlines were withering, followed by a period of relative silence each time the wave receded.Vanity Fair dubbed DeSantis an “angel...