Tea Party
The Tea Party accomplished a lot but is responsible for some damage as well. The damage came out of naïveté, political inexperience and uncompromising principle, not from character flaws. The damage is contained and the movement will learn as it grows. We have Sarah Palin and the TP to thank for turning what might have been just a normal mid-term reversal into a rout, a rousing success.
Split results
Charles Krauthammer said winning the House and failing to win the Senate was the perfect result. The Democrats will be unable credibly to blame the next two years on their loss of control of the Legislature to Republicans. It’s a comforting thought but we question its validity. BTW, this will be the first time ever there was a Democratic President and Senate facing a Republican House. The acrimony level will be high. We only hope John Boehner will be up to it.
Ugliest moment
Chris Matthews lost it when interviewing Michele Bachman. Michele stonewalled him (not a practice we approve) and Matthews castigated her ruthlessly. “Are you hypnotized?” he repeated over and over in various catenations. Matthews’ attacks were not limited to Bachman. He was vicious with Sen. Eric Cantor also. Cantor handled it extremely well, much better than Bachman did. Even Rick Santelli came under disparagement by Matthews who wasn’t even sure of his name. Perhaps Olbermann will recognize Matthews for one of his “Worst” awards.
Districting effect
In the Connecticut gubernatorial race more people voted for the Republican than for the Democrat but the Democrat was declared the winner. It wasn’t fraud. Apparently Connecticut has a process similar to the national Electoral College but where districts rather than delegates cast the votes. It is the political reverse of the time Democrats screamed “unfair” when Gore won the raw vote but lost in the electoral process. Periodically, Governors get to reset the boundaries of districts within their state. This is why Obama made seven trips to Ohio to support incumbent Gov. Strickland and why Strickland’s defeat was a significant victory for Republicans.
Harry Reid
Reid’s victory, though not unexpected is the most disturbing. Not because he won, but because of how he won. It was a victory for intimidation, voting irregularities and casino money. There is still a lot of cleaning up to do in Washington.
The cleaning lady
One has to admire Sarah Palin. From the lowly post of small town Mayor she took on her own party and succeeded in cleaning out the Republican rot in Alaska. That’s audacity we can admire. She has integrity, spunk and bravery. We respectfully propose that in 2013, President Marco Rubio appoint Sarah to the post of Washington DC Cleaning Czar reporting directly to Vice President Paul Ryan.
RANDOM THOTS 