Post-Election Thoughts

[n david]

Remember all the talk in 2012 about how the Republicans were done for the next decade. The Republicans even fell for it and published a long thesis on what the Republican Party needed to do. The reports of Republican demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Now I'm reading the same kind of doom and gloom for Democrats. Fear not, Democrats, if this mid-term says anything, it says voters are fickle...and turnout matters. We'll see the numbers in the next week or so, but I would bet turnout was lower than the 2010 mid-terms, and definitely lower than the 2012 Presidential election.

Five things:

1) Glad both Charlie Crist and Scott Brown lost. I know I should want Brown to win since Shaheen is terrible. But these guys were fakes. Phonies. Crist was a Republican before he became a Democrat. Who's he fooling? Brown moved to New Hampshire and ran because he thought it was his best chance to win again. So while I'm disappointed Shaheen won, I'm glad voters weren't fooled by these guys.

2) Yes, I'm happy the Republicans have the majority in the Senate and House; what I'm not happy about is having McConnell as Senate Majority Leader and the orange crybaby, Boehner, as House Speaker. Nothing says "we're the party of old, white guys" like having these two in charge. Just months ago, there was talk of Boehner being replaced; yet, here he is still in charge.

3) I don't buy the "we have a mandate" talk, and I never have. IMO, the voters didn't give the Republicans a mandate last night. If anything, the Republicans were given some rope and a bit of slack. Voters will be watching to see if the Republicans are really willing to work with obama the next 18 months. If not, they'll slip the rope over their collective necks and hang them with it come 2016.

4) This morning, I heard a clip of Senator Jeff Flake giving a speech last night at some victory celebration. He said something about how it's time to "end the gridlock." Hilarious. Look, politics is politics. It will be interesting to see what the Democrats do now that they are in the minority. Remember, it was Reid and the Democrats who used the "nuclear option" in order to move some things without Republicans being able to oppose it. And it was the Democrats who complained that the Republicans were stalling, hindering, blocking or causing gridlock in Congress. Will the Democrats now be the "Party of No?" Of course they will. It's all politics. Reid will suddenly remember how evil and unAmerican the nuclear option is, and how wonderful and constitutional the filibuster is.

5) The ball is in the Republicans hands. Honestly, I have no faith that they'll get anything done. IMO, they're going to screw up and fumble the ball for the 2016 election. They have to show the voters that they are serious about getting the economy and jobs back; that they will do something on Immigration which involves more than just border security; that they will offer plans and bills to improve healthcare, education and small business. What I don't want is the Republicans to spend the next 18 months pursuing a personal vendetta against obama and Eric Holder.

They will win or lose the 2016 election based on their action or inaction these next 18 months.

[Pressing-On]

Originally Posted by n david

1) Glad both Charlie Crist and Scott Brown lost. I know I should want Brown to win since Shaheen is terrible. But these guys were fakes. Phonies. Crist was a Republican before he became a Democrat. Who's he fooling? Brown moved to New Hampshire and ran because he thought it was his best chance to win again. So while I'm disappointed Shaheen won, I'm glad voters weren't fooled by these guys.

Just a note on what is more troubling than Scott Brown losing.

BOMBSHELL MEMO: Jeanne Shaheen Conspired With White House Insider On IRS Targeting Scandal

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) did not want to publicly release 2012 correspondences exchanged between the IRS and Jeanne Shaheen at her personal Washington office: the agency delayed releasing the information to a major conservative super PAC multiple times, even threatening to see the super PAC in court, according to emails.

http://dailycaller.com/2014/11/03/bo...eting-scandal/

[Carl]

Originally Posted by n david

Remember all the talk in 2012 about how the Republicans were done for the next decade. The Republicans even fell for it and published a long thesis on what the Republican Party needed to do. The reports of Republican demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Now I'm reading the same kind of doom and gloom for Democrats. Fear not, Democrats, if this mid-term says anything, it says voters are fickle...and turnout matters. We'll see the numbers in the next week or so, but I would bet turnout was lower than the 2010 mid-terms, and definitely lower than the 2012 Presidential election.

Five things:

1) Glad both Charlie Crist and Scott Brown lost. I know I should want Brown to win since Shaheen is terrible. But these guys were fakes. Phonies. Crist was a Republican before he became a Democrat. Who's he fooling? Brown moved to New Hampshire and ran because he thought it was his best chance to win again. So while I'm disappointed Shaheen won, I'm glad voters weren't fooled by these guys.

2) Yes, I'm happy the Republicans have the majority in the Senate and House; what I'm not happy about is having McConnell as Senate Majority Leader and the orange crybaby, Boehner, as House Speaker. Nothing says "we're the party of old, white guys" like having these two in charge. Just months ago, there was talk of Boehner being replaced; yet, here he is still in charge.

3) I don't buy the "we have a mandate" talk, and I never have. IMO, the voters didn't give the Republicans a mandate last night. If anything, the Republicans were given some rope and a bit of slack. Voters will be watching to see if the Republicans are really willing to work with obama the next 18 months. If not, they'll slip the rope over their collective necks and hang them with it come 2016.

4) This morning, I heard a clip of Senator Jeff Flake giving a speech last night at some victory celebration. He said something about how it's time to "end the gridlock." Hilarious. Look, politics is politics. It will be interesting to see what the Democrats do now that they are in the minority. Remember, it was Reid and the Democrats who used the "nuclear option" in order to move some things without Republicans being able to oppose it. And it was the Democrats who complained that the Republicans were stalling, hindering, blocking or causing gridlock in Congress. Will the Democrats now be the "Party of No?" Of course they will. It's all politics. Reid will suddenly remember how evil and unAmerican the nuclear option is, and how wonderful and constitutional the filibuster is.

5) The ball is in the Republicans hands. Honestly, I have no faith that they'll get anything done. IMO, they're going to screw up and fumble the ball for the 2016 election. They have to show the voters that they are serious about getting the economy and jobs back; that they will do something on Immigration which involves more than just border security; that they will offer plans and bills to improve healthcare, education and small business. What I don't want is the Republicans to spend the next 18 months pursuing a personal vendetta against obama and Eric Holder.

They will win or lose the 2016 election based on their action or inaction these next 18 months.

Excellent analysis! The republicans have a lot of senate seats up for re-election next time around so the majority could easily flip again.

[Pressing-On]

Originally Posted by n david

3) I don't buy the "we have a mandate" talk, and I never have. IMO, the voters didn't give the Republicans a mandate last night. If anything, the Republicans were given some rope and a bit of slack. Voters will be watching to see if the Republicans are really willing to work with obama the next 18 months. If not, they'll slip the rope over their collective necks and hang them with it come 2016.

That's called a "mandate".

[Pressing-On]

Originally Posted by n david

5) The ball is in the Republicans hands. Honestly, I have no faith that they'll get anything done. IMO, they're going to screw up and fumble the ball for the 2016 election. They have to show the voters that they are serious about getting the economy and jobs back; that they will do something on Immigration which involves more than just border security; that they will offer plans and bills to improve healthcare, education and small business. What I don't want is the Republicans to spend the next 18 months pursuing a personal vendetta against obama and Eric Holder.
.

The Republicans are going to have to deal with an Attorney General fight pushing Labor Secretary Tom Perez to replace Holder.

I agree with Senator Ted Cruz that we shouldn't get into any significant legislation during a lame duck session with Senator members who have lost their seats and won't be held accountable.

Cruz and Mike Lee sent Harry Reid a letter telling him that they will object to any legislation that is non-emergency. Leading the charge!

[Jermyn Davidson]

Originally Posted by n david

Remember all the talk in 2012 about how the Republicans were done for the next decade. The Republicans even fell for it and published a long thesis on what the Republican Party needed to do. The reports of Republican demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Now I'm reading the same kind of doom and gloom for Democrats. Fear not, Democrats, if this mid-term says anything, it says voters are fickle...and turnout matters. We'll see the numbers in the next week or so, but I would bet turnout was lower than the 2010 mid-terms, and definitely lower than the 2012 Presidential election.

Five things:

1) Glad both Charlie Crist and Scott Brown lost. I know I should want Brown to win since Shaheen is terrible. But these guys were fakes. Phonies. Crist was a Republican before he became a Democrat. Who's he fooling? Brown moved to New Hampshire and ran because he thought it was his best chance to win again. So while I'm disappointed Shaheen won, I'm glad voters weren't fooled by these guys.

2) Yes, I'm happy the Republicans have the majority in the Senate and House; what I'm not happy about is having McConnell as Senate Majority Leader and the orange crybaby, Boehner, as House Speaker. Nothing says "we're the party of old, white guys" like having these two in charge. Just months ago, there was talk of Boehner being replaced; yet, here he is still in charge.

3) I don't buy the "we have a mandate" talk, and I never have. IMO, the voters didn't give the Republicans a mandate last night. If anything, the Republicans were given some rope and a bit of slack. Voters will be watching to see if the Republicans are really willing to work with obama the next 18 months. If not, they'll slip the rope over their collective necks and hang them with it come 2016.

4) This morning, I heard a clip of Senator Jeff Flake giving a speech last night at some victory celebration. He said something about how it's time to "end the gridlock." Hilarious. Look, politics is politics. It will be interesting to see what the Democrats do now that they are in the minority. Remember, it was Reid and the Democrats who used the "nuclear option" in order to move some things without Republicans being able to oppose it. And it was the Democrats who complained that the Republicans were stalling, hindering, blocking or causing gridlock in Congress. Will the Democrats now be the "Party of No?" Of course they will. It's all politics. Reid will suddenly remember how evil and unAmerican the nuclear option is, and how wonderful and constitutional the filibuster is.

5) The ball is in the Republicans hands. Honestly, I have no faith that they'll get anything done. IMO, they're going to screw up and fumble the ball for the 2016 election. They have to show the voters that they are serious about getting the economy and jobs back; that they will do something on Immigration which involves more than just border security; that they will offer plans and bills to improve healthcare, education and small business. What I don't want is the Republicans to spend the next 18 months pursuing a personal vendetta against obama and Eric Holder.

They will win or lose the 2016 election based on their action or inaction these next 18 months.

What a refreshing read but honestly, I found myself let down by the Florida results.

At least with Crist, there would have been a chance of the minimum wage being raised in Florida.

Also, the marijuana amendment result disappointed me. I am tired of people going to jail over a weed that grows naturally.

This election season, at least for Florida but I bet it holds true elsewhere, was won by conservatives because of low voter turn out, which tends to affect the Democrats more than the GOP.


So if low voter turn out is one of major reasons why conservatives won, then it really isn't a mandate, but more of an indictment for the Democrats.

I hope we don't have to endure 18 months of repeal Obamacare talk.

[n david]

Originally Posted by Pressing-On

That's called a "mandate".

IMO, a mandate is when the voters overwhelming elect a party as a result of approving that party's agenda.

The reason I don't buy the mandate is this was a very low-turnout mid-term election. It's hard to claim that Americans overwhelming support the Republican agenda when most of them stayed home on the couch. I remember the 2012 election -- lines were out the door of the polling places. My parents worked at a polling place yesterday and it was slow. My precinct was very quiet and had no waiting. When I walked in to drop off my early ballot, there was one man leaving. No other voters were there.

[Pressing-On]

Originally Posted by n david

IMO, a mandate is when the voters overwhelming elect a party as a result of approving that party's agenda.

The reason I don't buy the mandate is this was a very low-turnout mid-term election. It's hard to claim that Americans overwhelming support the Republican agenda when most of them stayed home on the couch. I remember the 2012 election -- lines were out the door of the polling places. My parents worked at a polling place yesterday and it was slow. My precinct was very quiet and had no waiting. When I walked in to drop off my early ballot, there was one man leaving. No other voters were there.

The "mandate" was to stop Barack Obama - period. If the Republicans cozy up to Democrat policies, they will not win in 2016. They've been given a mandate by the American voters - stop this Administration.

[n david]

Originally Posted by Jermyn Davidson

What a refreshing read but honestly, I found myself let down by the Florida results.

At least with Crist, there would have been a chance of the minimum wage being raised in Florida.

Also, the marijuana amendment disappointed me. I am tired of people going to jail over a weed that grows naturally.

I agree about marijuana. Too many people in prison because of it.

Originally Posted by Jermyn Davidson

This election season, at least for Florida but I bet it holds true elsewhere, was won by conservatives because of low voter turn out, which tends to affect the Democrats more than the GOP.

So if low voter turn out is one of major reasons why conservatives won, then it really isn't a mandate, but more of an indictment for the Democrats.

I read in the Dallas Morning News that voter turnout estimate was reduced from 38-40% to 35-37% because of lesser than normal early returns and possible bad weather. The turnout here in AZ was said to be very low as well.

Originally Posted by Jermyn Davidson

I hope we don't have to endure 18 months of repeal Obamacare talk.

While I want obamacare to be repealed, I don't want to spend a lot of time on it with obama still in office.

[n david]

Originally Posted by Pressing-On

The "mandate" was to stop Barack Obama - period. If the Republicans cozy up to Democrat policies, they will not win in 2016. They've been given a mandate by the American voters - stop this Administration.

Respectfully disagree, PO. I wish it were so, I really do. But looking at the raw numbers, I can't see it as a mandate against Democrats or obama.