I'm not sure whether that title is the most apt, or if "Conventional Thinking" might have been better. Because it seems that both major American political parties are considering holding national conventions next year before the midterm elections. Which is indeed unconventional -- even thinking about midterm conventions. Semantic games aside, though, I do find myself wondering if it would be a good idea or not.

The idea was first proposed by the Democrats, who are considering holding a convention to showcase their up-and-coming prospective candidates and to whip up their base in an effort to motivate them to turn out to vote. I was actually surprised to read (in Axios, who got the scoop on this story) that it wouldn't be the first time such a thing has happened. As they report:

Such gatherings were routine for Democrats in the 1970s and '80s -- sometimes before the midterm elections to showcase candidates, and sometimes afterwards to assess the results of the elections.

In 1978, Democrats held a convention in Memphis after the midterms, and in 1982 the party gathered in Philadelphia the summer before the elections.

Democrats ditched the midterms event in 1986, after some party leaders argued it wasted time and energy.

Donald Trump then jumped on the midterm-convention bandwagon, claiming the idea was his own (naturally). He posted on social media: "I am thinking of recommending a National Convention to the Republican Party, just prior to the Midterms. It has never been done before. STAY TUNED!!!"

So far, neither party has actually committed to the idea yet. So it might not happen. But I would be willing to bet that if one party did start making serious plans to hold such an event that the other party would also do so just to provide some balance.

But again, I am left wondering if this would be a good idea or not -- especially for the Democrats. First there would be the question of timing. Which party would go first and which would follow? Which would be the more advantageous position? To get the party message out there first, or to counter the message of the other party and have the final word heading into the elections? How soon before the elections would such events happen -- in the summer (when they traditionally are held) or perhaps closer to the actual election (to provide a last-minute push across the finish line)?

For the Republicans, of course, it would be like a large-scale version of one of Trump's cabinet meetings. All would praise the Dear Leader to the skies, America would be declared "great again" and the lying would be completely off the charts. No matter what was actually going on with the economy, foreign policy, or anything else in the political sphere, it would be deemed the most wonderful era America had ever known. None of this would come as any sort of surprise, since this is par for the course for Donald Trump (just look at the 2024 Republican convention, if you've forgotten).

For the Democrats, however, they would not have one single leader to rally behind. Instead, it would be a casting call for the 2028 presidential race, with many wannabe candidates attempting to outdo all the others. This could work to their advantage, as it could allow for a few to shine much brighter than the others, but it could also devolve into a Democrat-on-Democrat struggle that would do anything but show party unity.

It would also cost a lot of money -- money that might be better spent on individual campaigns. And so far Democrats have been lagging on the fundraising front. They might decide to plug this hole by funding the convention largely with huge donations from the corporate world, which might not send the right message (especially to the progressive wing of the party).

But perhaps I am being too pessimistic. Perhaps it would be successful in energizing the resistance against Trump and his congressional Republicans, and perhaps it would remind the public of the stakes in the midterms.

So far, disaffected Democrats and "Democrats in disarray" have been the focus of the media this year. But when actual elections are held (special elections for the most part), the voters have been overwhelmingly turning out to vote for Democrats. So it's tough to tell whether the party truly is in dire straights, or whether there is a wave out there of people disgusted with what Trump has been doing who are just itching to show their support for the opposition at the ballot box.

Democrats actually seem in pretty good shape for this November's elections. Only two states (Virginia and New Jersey) elect governors in this off-off-year, but the Democratic candidates who have been nominated seem in great position to win these races at this point. A few good victories might re-energize the party to some extent, obviously.

There are two other issues that are worth mentioning here as well, though. The first is the question of how much media coverage midterm conventions would actually get. Even the presidential nominating conventions have been getting less and less television coverage as time goes on, since there are never any floor fights or any other truly dramatic and contentious moments anymore. The events are highly scripted extravaganzas designed to showcase the party and the party's best speakers. Which can make for some pretty boring television, at least to average voters (I say this realizing that not everyone watches conventions gavel-to-gavel, as I do). National presidential conventions are usually four-night affairs, but one wonders if all the rah-rah go-team excitement could be sustained for more than a night or two just for a midterm election cycle.

The other big thing is what is already going to happen next summer. Since it will be 2026, there will be some enormous celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Trump has been planning to put on a show for this, complete with his own tacky events, and without doubt he will infuse all of them with the glorification of himself. So when the Republicans look at a calendar to pick out a date for their midterm national convention, they'll probably take all this into account and schedule it to be integrated with all the events which will center around July 4th. The Democrats will have to schedule their event keeping this in mind.

But do we really need midterm national party conventions in the first place? Would they be just an enormous waste of time and money and resources that might better be applied to get-out-the-vote operations and whatnot? Those are questions that are worth asking, as the parties mull over whether to hold midterm extravaganzas or not.

I've always been somewhat amazed that there are three things on the calendar which all follow four-year cycles which all happen in exactly the same years: leap years, the Olympics, and the presidential election cycle. Will that become a thing of the past, as both political parties decide that four years is too long to wait between holding national conventions? Or will this be a one-off sort of thing where the parties try it out only to decide it wasn't really worth it in the end? I don't have the answer for that. Being a political junkie, of course I would watch such conventions and analyze how effective they are, but I can also see the logic of not wasting the money on holding a big party and instead putting it to better use. So it will be interesting to see what happens next summer, either way.

-- Chris Weigant

Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant