Obama’s Uh-Oh Of The Month
The results are in. For those of you unaware, yesterday was actually an election day. If you missed it, don’t worry. It’s only the staple of our entire republican way of life in which we give all power to elected representatives in a free and fair process that is the hallmark of democracy. Whew. Where was I?
Oh yeah, the Democrats got trounced. Not surprising if you read history books. This trend is common. As a matter of fact, you’ve perhaps heard that in all America’s history, each time a political party takes the White House (i.e. Dems in 2008), that party loses the following midterm elections. The only two exceptions are FDR and George W. Bush. Roosevelt had the country’s attention during the Great Depression while Bush rocked America’s approval following 9/11.
So independents in key states broke for the GOP last night. That simply lines up with our history, a two century string of checks and balances where the winners eventually lose and the losers can usually make a comeback.
You can read any of a thousand articles for details, but here’s the important basics you should know to gather the meaning of these elections.
- Obama ‘s influence takes a hit. He personally campaigned a good deal for his party, most notably Democratic gubernatorial candidates in NJ (Corzine) and Virginia (Deeds). They both lost even with the president’s backing.
- Independents have shifted direction. Last year, the valuable Indies helped Obama to the top. Last night, they showed concerns over the past year’s progress.
- Republicans now have a playbook that works. Every republican candidate on the ballot next year will hammer the same strategies that won voters last night. Not too hard really when the economy is in the tank, Democrats are in total control of the government, and Obama has struggled to achieve some of his top campaign priorities.
- Speaking of those priorities, big reform efforts by the Dems will be scaled back by politicians fearful of the pro-GOP trend. If they lost votes during this part of the process, you can guarantee those Democratic leaders will fear a voter revolt if they over-pursue controversial measures such as the ones included in healthcare reform.
- The base was not kickin’. Last year, Obama inspired millions of young voters who just didn’t care or show up yesterday. Last night’s electorate was also much whiter than last Novemeber when Blacks and Hispanics played a huge role in the Dems romp. If the no shows continue like this in 2010, the Democrats will be beaten down even more.
That’s the cool thing about history: You can usually see all this coming. The future is often predictable because we have the past to base our guesses on. The past is nothing more than what people did yesterday, and people are pretty predictable.
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Life. Culture. Education.
Life as Pop Culture Professor Clay Morgan
In The Matrix, Morpheus tells Neo he can take the blue pill and go on believing whatever he wants to believe. Or he can take the red pill to stay in Wonderland and find out how deep the rabbit hole goes.
This is a red pill type site that provides information in an entertaining way. It’s about clear thinking and good writing. It’s about finding meaning amidst the absurd. It’s about humor and truth.
I’m a writer / speaker who teaches history and political courses at a couple of local colleges. Where is local, you say? Well, that would be Wonderland of course.
On topics ranging from pop culture to the meaning of life, my brain’s always poppin’. Take the red pill and unplug.
