Five Thoughts on the Election

#1 - Ding Dong the Witch is Dead - The reign of one of the most imperious Speakers of the House is over. None too soon.  Remember she was the one who said to her members they could find out what was in the health care bill after it was past.    I, for one, am glad she is gone.

#2 - The GOP won an impressive set of elections in the House, in State Houses and in Governorships - at this point there are 11 races that have not been called in the House and in five the GOP is leading - that would mean a net gain of 65 seats. That is the largest win for the GOP ever. Most of the map in the middle two years ago was blue. Evidently a vote for the health care monstrosity that the Imperial Speaker thought was not meant to be read - was not a popular one.   Even the GOP member who voted for one version of it - lost.  Some long term democrat members (those that had not retired already) lost. To put that in perspective look at Jim Oberstar, Ike Skelton and Russ Feingold - between them they had more than 80 years of seniority.  The impressive nature of the win is also conditioned on the retirements like Bart Stupak and David Obey who opted not to go for re-election.  One of the most obnoxious members of the House (Alan Grayson) got picked off.   The new senate may have a hard time if Reid wants to try to run it the way he did.  But you also need to look at the 2012 class where there are several democratic members who come from now redder states.  Reid may be the majority leader but he could well be toothless.

#3 - In spite of the spin of the establishment the Tea Party did pretty well - They had some notable losses (I was disappointed that Angle did not knock off Harry Reid - admittedly they were both weak candidates) but they also seemed to have won some important races.  Remember that six months ago the MSM was parroting some democrats and calling the Tea Party an "astroturf" grassroots movement.

#4 - California is absurdly different - They seem to have knocked out one incumbent democrat from Congress.  But they elected (for a third term which his father could not get) Jerry Brown.   He may not be as bad as he was three decades ago.  Whitman's campaign was horrible.  She had a strong case to make and blew it.   Californians elected a far left Attorney General.  They re-elected arguably the least able member of the US Senate.  They supported extending the role of the redistricting commission to our congressional delegation.  They turned down dope.  They rejected a parks fee and raised the vote requirements for fees to be adopted.  At the same time they reduced the threshold for approving a state budget.   But if the rest of the country was going RED - California stayed BLUE.

#5 - The mandate can be volatile and if the new members do not get it..... - One thing the election showed was that the voters are not in favor of a new expansionist government.  But I think they also will not be supporters of prancing and dancing that the GOP seemed to engage in before they were ousted.