This author and blogger was literally stunned by the political earthquake that hit American politics yesterday!
The sixth year of a President is not a good year in history, as has been proven many times.
On the average, the President’s party loses 26 seats in the House and 6 in the Senate in the second term midterm.
This time, the Democrats lost at least 14 seats in the House and at least 7 in the Senate.
The Republicans gained what looks like the biggest majority in the House since 1928, when Herbert Hoover was elected President, and the next year, the Great Depression hit America!
The Republicans won control of the Senate, with at least 52 seats, and possibly two more, in Alaska and Louisiana.
The Democrats lost Senate seats in the “red” states, and also lost Governorships in “blue” states, including Maryland, Massachusetts, and Illinois.
The issue is whether the Republicans are willing to move forward on legislation that Barack Obama can sign into law.
If they are willing to stop their obstructionism, some progress can be made, but the President should NOT give up all his principles, as that would make his Presidency become one of caving in to right wing demands.
We are going to have a tough two years, but the Democrats, and their progressive and liberal allies, cannot act as if they are Republicans, and must, instead, fight for their principles, and see yesterday’s defeat as more of a midterm normal development, that is extremely likely to be reversed in the Senate in two years, and with the Democrats still favored to win the Electoral College in 2016, and therefore, win the White House!
What this country needs are aggressive progressives! Like Warren and Sanders, for starters.
List of the newest crazy Republicans: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/11/05/1342284/-Meet-your-new-Craziest-Republicans?showAll=yes
A small bright side of yesterday’s results is that Jon Stewart and the gang at SNL aren’t going to run short of material over the next two years.
Thanks so much, Rustbelt Democrat, for the list of craziest new Republicans in Congress!
Pragmatic Progressive, you are correct about Warren and Sanders!
Milt Shook’s post-election analysis: http://pleasecutthecrap.com/an-2014-election-post-mortem-too-much-like-2010/
I’m also curious to see what the media will say about the filibuster: http://www.balloon-juice.com/2014/11/05/simple-prediction/
Interesting: http://billmoyers.com/2014/11/05/gerrymandering-rigged-2014-elections-republican-advantage/
Let’s not forget to include the Koch brothers, the real winners of the election. They bought the Senate to go with the House and the Supreme Court which they already owned. Approval of the XL pipeline will pay them back royally.
If some toilet paper or something has Georgia Pacific (aka Koch brothers) on it, I buy another brand instead.
I’ve been boycotting Burger King ever since they moved their headquarters out of the country to avoid taxes.
A “wave” election—presidential and/or midterm—happens in large part because the base of an incumbent party (whatever level of office) is not pleased with the incumbent—be it incumbent president, the incumbent White House party, the majority-control parties of U.S. House and/or U.S. Senate.
I think Democratic voters who won’t admit this is key to the Republicans winning a majority-control pickup of the U.S. Senate are, to some extent, kidding themselves.
The only impressive news for statewide-voted elections for the Democrats came with the pickup of the governor’s mansion in Pennsylvania, where Tom Wolf unseated incumbent Republican Tom Corbett. Since 1938, Pennsylvania has been on a persistent pattern of electing governors belonging to the party in opposition of the incumbent U.S. president. This is only the second break in that pattern in nearly 80 years; the other exception was in 1982. All the rest, through 2010, have fit the pattern.
Aside from some statewide ballot issues, that’s the one impressive result for Democrats who had low turnout from their base, from the 18 to 29 voting-age group, from 30 to 44 voting-age group as well. The 45 to 64 and 65 and older voting-age groups commonly comprised, state after state, two-thirds the size of the 2014 vote. In U.S. presidential elections, the older-tiered group is usually no more than 52 or 53 percent (meaning, 47 or 48 percent combine for the younger-tiered voting-age groups).
I’m one who has some problems with the Democrats, on policy and on leadership, that has me questioning why they should reliably be receiving my vote. This [“Website”] linked article is one of them.
D, what website linked article are you referring to?
I noticed during his press conference Sen. Turtle (as I have nicknamed McConnell) said, of course, that he thought there were two areas that the GOP and the President could immediately come together and compromise. Trade and Tax Reform. These people truly are one trick ponies.
What link D?
Thanks for Milt’s link Southern Liberal. Hits the nail on the head.
A couple more that hit the nail on the head:
http://immasmartypants.blogspot.com/2014/11/what-does-it-mean.html
http://www.thepeoplesview.net/main/2014/11/5/the-dumbest-liberal-excuses-for-not-voting
I will copy and past the website link. (It should have come up from user name, lit in the color blue.) Anyone needing to should do the same.
https://medium.com/@matthewstoller/its-al-froms-democratic-party-we-just-live-here-5d0de7f89c3e
Thanks, D!
Another article worth reading: http://wisdomvoices.com/working-to-curb-hatred-the-day-after-the-2014-elections/