What does the victory for Republicans last Tuesday really mean? If you ask most smiling Republicans, as I recently did while visiting a number of bars on Capitol Hill frequented by GOPers, you get the standard bloviating: "The election was all about Obama and the Democrats and their failed agenda. The real America has spoken! Victory! We have beaten back the infidels! and...." okay, okay that last part is a joke, but you get what I'm saying. Republicans believe that reality is bending to their will. Of course, under the circumstances, "All a man can do is smile back" in the face of such mindlessness and, of course, order a stiff drink - bourbon on the rocks for the record, so as to get as comfortably numb as quickly as possible.
So after taking it all in: the Republican gloating, the bourbon, the failed democratic election strategy and an examination of the election data, three things strike me (and most of you I suspect). One, the Republican victory is, obviously, very shallow. As reported here at the Kos the voter turn out for this midterm was the lowest in 70 years. President Obama acknowledged that rightfully when he said he "heard" the vote of dissatisfaction of the two thirds of voters that "didn't show up" at the polls last Tuesday.
I personally think, regardless of how frustrated you are, not voting is a big mistake. But the American electorate likes shooting themselves in the foot. It's the American way. If your party isn't giving you exactly what you want, when, how and as fast as you want it, then hand the reins to the other party, who will actively work to guarantee you aren't going to get anything you want and may even reverse some of the little gains you fought hard for. Insane when you think about it.
Secondly, the electoral map clearly favored the Republicans on Tuesday. A lot of the battles where in red state Republican friendly areas and the party out of power usually has an advantage in a midterm election anyway. So it was an uphill battle from the start. That doesn't mean Democrats couldn't have won more campaigns or held on to the Senate. I just don't see how you energize Democratic party leaning voters by distancing yourself from major policy accomplishments or in Lundergan-Grimes's case, looking like a fool by not admitting you voted for the leader of your own party in a Presidential election. That was a very ackward move and certainly upset loyal democrats in KY.
Third, most Americans actually agree with many democratic ideas even if in the midterms the small electorate showing up didn't vote for them. While Democrats do work actively to improve the system for the average middle-class family and to assist those in need, that means nothing if Democratic voters don't show up to support those policies. Clearly the nation is much better off now than it was at the end of the disastrous Bush (43) Presidency in 2008. But memories are short and most people, while realizing things are better, don't think things, economically, are as good as they should be. Even though, looking at the data, things actually are much better; something the Dems absolutely failed to push during the campaigns.
Part of the problem for Democrats is trying to compare a time period (pre - 2008) where pernicious supply-side economic policy had hollowed out the middle-class and deregulation had created a disasterous economic bubble, with the new economic reality that's more realistic and stable but not as fast paced (yet) or falsely stimulated. The new economy, as President Obama has discussed, will require a work force more educated and competitive. It will require investment in education and training by the taxpayer, just like this nation did at the end of WWII. But the old economy, the one constantly teetering on ruin, favoring the rich and hurting middle-class growth, is (or should be) gone...unless we return to the GOP's failed economic policies.
President Obama has extended the olive branch to victorious Republicans. But we've seen this movie before. The olive tree on the White House lawn is looking pretty bare and branchless. These fine specimens of peace and compromise usually end up broken and smashed on a Republican cloak room floor. The entire past 6 years the GOP has been doing little but obstructing and the trying to ruin President Obama. I highly recommend the President have a good war strategy if he wants to improve his legacy and help his party for the 2016 elections.
So to end this ramble, my thoughts are that President Obama and Democratic party should't take this set back too hard. Simply put, bad timing aided by bad strategy, aided by Democratic voter apathy. Hopefully President Obama sticks to his guns and takes advantage of now being able to blame a Republican Congress for the nation's problems. Because in reality Republicans are at fault for many of our problems. I'm not being cynical or hoping for more total gridlock, but President Obama simply cannot allow Republicans to think Tuesday's election -- where so little of the electorate showed up -- gives the Republicans a mandate. That's nonsense. Obama will have, I'm sure, a lot of opportunities to show the American people what the GOP is all about over the next 2 years and hopefully show why Democrats need to be in charge going forward.
In 2016 the GOP is defending 24 Senate seats and the Democrats only 10. And it's a Presidential election year and this usually means the Democrats hold the advantage in high voter turn out. As many of you well know Democratic Presidents have won the popular vote in 5 of the past 6 Presidential elections.
At this point Democrats need to regroup and quickly start pushing their vision of the future. Focus on the massive economic inequality (popular) in our society, good government and all the other pro middle class policies and programs that are clearly popular with the majority of Americans.
Keep pushing forward and the red tide will quickly turn blue.