So now what?
Yesterday, the American voting public showed up to express themselves in record numbers. As a result, Election 2010 has turned out to be the largest Congressional upset since World War II, with results exceeding the auto-erotic expectations of even the most rabid Fox News GOP sycophant.
Last night, incumbents lost big. The question that sits like a rock in my mind, however, is: Who is going to lose next? More importantly, when is the population of the United States, as a whole, going to start winning?
So-called “Tea Party” candidates both won and lost, yet claim this as the beginning of a “new era” in GOP politics. “Tea Party” wins in some earlier Senate nomination races actually lead to GOP losses in those same races, ultimately directly resulting in the GOP failing to claim a majority in the Senate. I would seem that, in a few cases, philosophy won out over old-school party loyalty. Is this a good thing? Only history will tell.
Republicans claim this is a repudiation of the sitting President (mid-term elections always are) and his policies. Some made conciliatory remarks to “Tea Party” members. How will this experience, coupled with the past 4 years, inform and moderate how they choose to do business? Only history will tell.
The President earlier suggested that this sort of outcome would merely be the result of fear and anger on the part of his “enemies.” Others have opined that this election was more about an inspired Republican turn out versus an uninspired Democrat turn out. What does this mean for President Obama’s future? Only history will tell.
And what of the Independents who helped carry Barack Obama to the Presidency 2 long years ago? It would seem that many, if not most, of them have defected. I, myself, am a registered Independent. I always keep my votes secret, but without giving anything away, suffice it to say that I cast votes for Republicans, a Democrat, and several Libertarian candidates. You might even be surprised at how I voted on Arizona’s Proposition 203.
Finally, in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, which is heavily Hispanic, incumbent Congressman Raúl Grijalva, famous in AZ for his nationwide call for a boycott against Arizona over SB1070, appears (at press time) to have quite literally eked out a narrow victory. His win itself seems somewhat less significant than the fact that (as of this moment) he only won by a statistical handful of votes in a district that should have, by common Pop Culture wisdom, been his for the taking. What does this say?
This morning, an acquaintance shared something so profound and dead-on, I wish I had written it, myself:
“If you want the state to intervene overseas, you’re a conservative. If you want the state to intervene domestically, you’re a liberal. If you want both, you’re “middle of the road.” If you just want to be left the hell alone by this insanity, you’re some kind of a dangerous radical.” — Adam Muntner
Since Adam said it all, I have nothing left to say.