Election Ramblings

So now instead of wall to wall campaign ads, it's wall to wall analysis of the meaning of the election. The meaning is this: the Democrats received a "shellacking" (Obama's own words). It's a massive repudiation of the last two years, just like 2008 was a massive repudiation of the previous several years, and so on. Wait until 2012, probably more of the same.


My election ramblings as I was up to 1:00 a.m. watching the returns:

• On my Facebook status, I identify myself as a "Right Wing Evangelical Republican Wacko." So yes, I liked the results. I've always identified myself as a Republican and always will. I have cheered many times for what Republicans have done over the years, and cringed just as often. But I'll keep sticking with them. However, I have never voted straight ticket, and never will either. Nor do I embrace the term Independent, which means you don't have to stand for anything and can claim credit for whoever wins.


• How DID Democrats snatch defeat from the jaws of victory so quickly? I mean, flash back to November 2008. The Republicans were exiled to the political wilderness and it seemed like a long, long time before they'd ever be back. It's amazing how it turned so abruptly. I still think it was Scott Brown's victory in Massachusetts that started it. Democrats fell asleep on that one and from that point on, Republicans got momentum and a huge boost of confidence and never let it go.
  
• The young voters that propelled Obama to power in 2008 stayed home in rather significant numbers. Older voters that voted Democrat in 2008 made a huge swing to voting Republican this time around. Those changes in voting patterns were very detrimental to the Democrats.
  
• I know you can't stand her, but Democrats, quit underestimating Sarah Palin. Also, don't think we Republicans will embrace her as a candidate for President. Polls clearly show we like her as a campaigner, but absolutely not as a candidate.
  
• Republicans all over have absolutely dreamed of the day when Pelosi has to hand over the gavel (I don't think a lot of Democrats will exactly miss her either).
  
• Hey Meg Whitman, was it worth the $140 million of your own money?
  
• Hey California, Jerry Brown was a little wacky when I lived in California while he was governor, and that was 30+ years ago. You may be in for a ride.


• Laugh at you want at the Tea Party, but they did make a difference, both good and bad (I mean yeah, they probably caused the Senate to stay Democrat). But the voters discerned very well in keeping Angle and O'Donnell out. They had no business there and were poor candidates. Still, gains were made in the Senate anyway with Dan Coats here in Indiana and a huge symbolic victory by taking Obama's former seat in Illinois.


• The only cable channel I get is MSNBC, so it was sometimes painful and oftentimes borderline hilarious watching and listening to Rachel Maddow, Chris Mathews, and Keith Olberman report on the Republican landslide (sorry, tsunami has been used enough).


• The best election night news is NBC. ABC is okay, but CBS should just shut down operations on election night.


• As I expected, Jackie Walorski lost Indiana's 2nd Congressional District in a close contest. The Libertarian got over 9,000 votes, so that could have been a spoiler. His name was Mark Vogel, one of my former student workers. My boss, a Democrat who is on the South Bend City Council, said he has a future in politics, and I would agree. He held his own in the debate with Walorski and Donnelly. Donnelly is a good guy, and he likely got a lot of well deserved Republican votes. But he won in 2008 by about 15,000 v0tes and Tuesday night by just under 3,000, so Jackie put up a very good showing. She says she'll be back in 2012, but who knows, she may decide life outside of politics ain't so bad.
  
• I like the tone John Boehner set in his speech. No balloons, no cheering, kept it subdued, unlike Gingrich in 1994. The only question is if he'll cry when he gets the gavel from Pelosi.
  
• I really like the diverse field of Republicans that won office, such as Nikki Haley and Tim Scott in South Carolina, Susana Martinez in New Mexico, and others. No, it's not widespread diversity, but definintely a change from how it's been in the past and something the party absolutely has to do.

This was not a vote based on anti-incumbent fever. It was clearly a vote against the Democrats, because very few Republican incumbents lost and a slew of new and long-time Democrats went down. However, it also was not necessarily an embrace of the Republican Party. They have been given, extraordinarily, a second chance after an epic squandering of a political opportunity by the other party. But come 2012, they could just as easily be on their way out as power no longer lasts a generation, but a mere 2 years.

So, we'll see what happens . . .