Thousands of words have been written in response and analysis of the election. There's really no way to summarize all of it, but here are a few things that I think really strike home.
Obama himself admitted it was a 'shellacking'. No doubt about it, no way to spin it. It was an ugly day for Dems, and a glorious one for Reps. Sure, we lost some that would have been nice to have, but it's ridiculous to think that such an historic election sweep is any kind of a failure, as the mainstream media is trying to paint it. No dice!
In reality, it was the resurgence of traditional American values that pushed the far Left out. This is evidenced by looking at the fact that one of the most radically Left progressive caucus in the House was completely wiped out. No, seriously, they went 0-95. Gone, every one of them. Now that's a thing of beauty!
Obama held a press conference the day after the election (his first in months, by the way) and he clearly tried to pin the massive losses on simple disgruntledness with the economy. Sure, people are plenty hacked off about that, but who put in place those policies that have been hobbling and dismantling the economy? ***crickets*** He just doesn't get it. Or he refuses to acknowledge it. Either way, it's clear he's not moderating his stance on anything. For example, one reporter specifically asked him about the polls showing major sustained support for repealing Obama's signature legislation, the health care reform (incorrectly citing 1 out of 2 people supporting repeal). Obama's response is very telling: the American people don't want us to rehash the last two years.
Um, actually, almost 2/3 of voters coming out of the polls were demanding exactly that!
Personally, I think it all comes down to fundamental ideology. Barack Obama seems to have a completely different idea of 'core American values' than most of the rest of America. In fact, his values are so different from most of the rest of the us that he made one grand strategic error:
In the aftermath of the historic midterm elections, it's safe to say that whether the president really is a socialist or not, Americans don't care. Whether or not he walks and talks like a socialist, Americans just don't hold with a president in the White House who governs like a socialist.
Back in 2008, it all seemed to be working out just as planned. Capitalism had failed; the evil Bushies were bailing out the banks and letting homeowners go to the wall. Even brain-dead Newsweek could see the writing on the wall. "We are all Socialists Now!" it crowed.
Only something went wrong. It was nobody's fault -- not Obama's, and certainly not the Midwest Academy's. It was something nobody in the ruling class could have foreseen. Americans didn't turn to big government in the crisis of 2008. Instead, they turned on big government!
Obama and the Chicago socialists had completely misread the American people.
Someday, the president and his lefty friends are going to have to understand that in a crisis, most people will not react like peasants with pitchforks, 1930s auto-workers in Detroit, or the laid-off steelworkers whom the young Obama organized in South Chicago. Ordinary middle-class Americans do not sit around waiting for some radical suit to turn up and organize them into a "community." Ordinary middle-class Americans get on the internet and start to organize on their own.
In the end, of course, it doesn't matter whether President Obama is a socialist, a crypto-socialist, or a liberal. From the point of view of the ordinary American, it's a distinction without a difference. Faced with a problem, President Obama will always opt for a solution that makes government bigger and Americans smaller.
Unfortunately for the president and his grand plan to transform America, the majority of the American people believe that the solution to our problems is to make the American people bigger and the government smaller.
And there you have it. I believe that's what it all boils down to: who should hold the power in America, the State or the individual? Obama and his Leftist Dems think the State. Most everyone else disagree, and that's what was revealed in spades on Tuesday.
One of the least publicized effects of this election is what happened at the local and state level. Get this: at least 17 state legislatures flipped from Democrat control to Republican control, some completely GOP and with wide margins; some of them haven't been Republican controlled for well over 100 years!
Why does this matter? Well, aside from the obvious right-ward shift at the state and local level (which is good all by itself), this year is also a big re-districting year, meaning that many states will be re-drawing their district lines, and if Republicans control this process they can potentially protect vulnerable GOPers and pit Dems against each other, thus affecting future elections for years to come.
So how about that voter fraud? It's unmistakably a part of the equation. Interestingly, an analysis of the last three election cycles in the Senate reveals that out of every single race that comes down to a margin of 15,000 votes or less, only one was won by a Republican. One, and it was completely a vengeance thing. One. Does that sound right to you? Me neither. Seems like the suddenly-found-this-bag-of-votes-in-the-trunk methodology of the Democrats is pretty damned effective. More on that in a future post.
Anyway, let's look at some takeaways. Republicans beware: this election was a rejection of Democrats, not necessarily an acceptance of Republicans. Yet. Right now Republican leaders are talking a fine game in both the House...
...and the Senate...
"Over the past week, some have said it was indelicate of me to suggest that our top political priority over the next two years should be to deny President Obama a second term in office,” Mr. McConnell says. “But the fact is, if our primary legislative goals are to repeal and replace the health spending bill; to end the bailouts; cut spending; and shrink the size and scope of government, the only way to do all these things it is to put someone in the White House who won’t veto any of these things. We can hope the President will start listening to the electorate after Tuesday’s election. But we can’t plan on it."
...but will they walk the talk? Time will tell. Two perspectives on this:
Erick Erickson at RedState --- "I don’t want compromise. I want people who will fight for principle. I know President Obama will still be in the White House for two more years ... but I don’t want people who give up before the battle has been had. Obama is a fighter. If our guys are compromisers, they lose. Fighters always beat compromisers. The lesson from this election should be the following: FIGHT. Fight the battle, and if we need to send you reinforcements, we will. It’s not about “overpromising.” Voters are not idiots—they recognize when their side is out-numbered. They want their politicians to be who they say they are..."
Amen to both of those! I suspect that gridlock will be the name of the game for the next couple years, and Obama is already suggesting that would be a bad thing...but I think a lot of Americans are actually hoping for it. If the GOP is smart, they'll start attacking right now, and beat to death the line that they're the ones listening to the American people. They need to set the tone fast and hard, and absolutely refuse to let up. Another election is coming in just two years, and if the GOP does what they've been elected to do, there's every reason to believe that this week was just the first wave of a multi-wave housecleaning in political makeup of America.
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