Republican gains were massive. And when I say massive, I mean a tsunami or tidal wave!!
No, the GOP did not take the Senate and some races are still outstanding, but the Senate GOP has moved to the right. The Republicans picking up, in the worst case, seven seats is historically strong and it could end up being nine seats. (At the end of the day here, on Nov 3rd, two possible Republican pick-up seats are still too close to call plus there are several moderate Dems who ran against the president or whose seats are up for re-election in two years that will need to caucus with the GOP to survive and be re-elected.)
And consider that the Republican Party has picked up more seats in the House of Representatives than at any time since 1948 - that is more than sixty seats. Ike Skelton, Class of 1976, is gone. Many, many other Democrats are also gone.
That, in and of itself, is significant. But that's not the half of it. The real story is the underreported story of the night - the Republican pick ups at the state level.
There will be 18 states subject to reapportionment. The Republicans will control a majority of those - at least ten and maybe a dozen or more. More significantly, a minimum of seventeen state legislative houses have flipped to the Republican Party.
The North Carolina Legislature is Republican for the first time since 1870. Yes, that is Eighteen Seventy.
The Alabama Legislature is Republican for the first time since 1876.
For those saying this is nothing because it is the South, consider these:
The entire Wisconsin and New Hampshire legislatures have flipped to the GOP by wide margins.
The State Houses in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Iowa, Montana, and Colorado flipped to the GOP.
The Maine and Minnesota Senates flipped to the GOP.
The Texas and Tennessee Houses went from virtually tied to massive Republican gains. The gains in Texas were so big that the Republicans no longer need the Democrats to get state constitutional amendments out of the state legislature.
These gains go all the way down to the municipal level across the nation. That did not happen even in 1994.
This was a tsunami.
Conservatives… Independents… Moderate Democrats… Tea Party Members… Libertarians… Constitutionalists… and Patriots of all types pulled together yesterday to send Washington and Team Obama a message: Stop spending!; Extend the Bush Tax Cuts; Repeal ObamaCare; Stop the Campaign Toward Cap and Trade; Govern by the Will of the People and the Constitution; No more International or UN Law; Secure our Borders and Enforce Immigration Laws and Listen to the American People!!
Pretty much all the states, except California, heard the call and sent that same message. And Nevadans were either confused or the Reid election was stolen.
Now we come to the interpretive reviews and implementation of the message that will no doubt go on for weeks if not until January, when most are sworn in. (Delaware’s Coons will be sworn in almost immediately.)
But hearing Obama’s speech this morning, he hasn’t quite gotten it or is simply too much or an ideologue to change.
Some are lamenting the shortfall of the GOP taking control of the Senate, but in reality it might be the best thing that ever happened to them. They will have the de facto control of that body, but officially they only control one house, so they cannot be blamed for any gridlock or overall outcome in the 2012 Election, since the Dems still control the Senate and the White House.
Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Charles Krauthammer suggests, “Right now, I think they're in the perfect position tactically: Control the House, object, propose stuff that Obama may veto, and run against him on that in 2012.”
Glenn Beck suggests that the GOP and their caucus hold the line on increasing the debt ceiling. He interviewed and talked to most of the experts while writing his latest book: Broke
Some Tea Party candidates are asking for their own caucus, which would include Tea Party supported candidates from both Houses of Congress, although they will undoubtedly vote with the GOP.
And most hope that the GOP realizes that this vote was a vote against Obama, Pelosi and their policies (we are still not sure how Reid survived), not a vote of confidence in the GOP. But they benefit if they understand that and make the changes they need to make. If not, their party may give way to the Tea Party and they may go the way of the Whigs.
Referendum rundown: UFOs, puppy mills, pot, and taxes
The results are (mostly) in regarding ballot initiatives from across the country: Colorado won’t fund a statewide UFO commission. Californians still can’t smoke pot legally unless they’ve been diagnosed with anxiety or early-onset balding or gas. Arizona can’t use affirmative action to hire for government jobs. Rhode Island will stay Rhode Island. Here are some of the more notable ballot initiatives and how they fared.
Losers
- “The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations” will remain exactly that despite a campaign arguing that the name conjures up images of slavery.
- Perhaps due to an already tight state budget, 85% of Denver residents voted against the creation of an extraterrestrial affairs commission, despite the initiative’s claim that the board wouldn’t need a budget. The commission would have investigated UFO sightings across the state. The measure might have fared better if the initiative had promised counseling for people who spot UFOs.
- Marijuana initiatives in four states failed. Medical marijuana initiatives in South Dakota and Oregon failed by double digits, as did a legalization measure in California. An initiative to regulate medical marijuana in New Mexico failed by roughly one percentage point.
- An initiative to increase the state income tax on earners in the top 1% was rejected by roughly 65% of Washington residents.
Winners
- Voters in Oklahoma and Arizona voted to opt out of Obamacare’s insurance mandate. The initiatives won by more than 60% in both states, while a similar amendment in Colorado was trailing as of this writing.
- Oklahoma voters have also approved a measure that would forbid judges from considering international law or Islamic law when deciding cases.
- In Massachusetts, voters repealed a year-old sales tax on alcohol, but failed to cut the actual sales tax or repeal a state mandate on subsidized housing.
- Ballot initiatives in New York and Oklahoma passed that improve ballot access.
- Puppy mill opponents in Missouri passed a ballot initiative requiring “large-scale dog breeding operations” to provide exercise, food, clean water, rest, and recreation for the animals in their care.
- Arizona residents voted to do away with affirmative action at the government level. This includes in state universities and colleges.
- In Florida and California, residents voted to de-politicize the redistricting process
- Arizona voters also gave their governor a clear mandate and support to secure the border, enforce immigration laws and fight the feds as they attempt to stop Arizona from doing both.
It is going to be interesting!!
Ask Marion~
Hat tip to Red State for bullet points the Daily Caller
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