Beef, and midterm desperation: It’s what’s for dinner

Every child of the late 20th century knows the spot. The stirring strings of Aaron Copland’s “Hoe-down” rising to a fevered crescendo of Americana as that voice — a two-packs-of-Luckies gravel with just a hint of a smile in it — is calling you to the table. Robert Mitchum, Mr. “The Longest Day” himself, says it's...