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November 14, 2006
Dems take it to the House . . . and the Senate
After six long years of an American political landscape dominated by far-right Republicans, Democrats swept into control in last week’s midterm elections.
Let’s put the magnitude of this victory into context. Dems will most likely gain 30 seats in the House. If Rep. John Barrow maintains his lead over Republican Max Burns in an expected recount of Georgia’s 12th District, Republicans will have failed to pick up any Democratic-held governorship, House or Senate seat. The gains in Congress are the largest since 1994.
In 2007, Nancy Pelosi will become the first woman to ascend to the position of Speaker of the House. Minnesota’s own Keith Ellison will become the first Muslim in Congressional history. Governor Howard Dean, Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, engineered a “50-State Strategy” that successfully put races into play in areas the conventional wisdom deemed lost causes. Congratulations are in order for all three.
Who lost? Well, a lot of the poster children of the far right, that’s who. Sen. Rick Santorum, famous for his persistent attacks on homosexuality, lost by nearly 20 points to his Democratic challenger, Bob Casey, Jr.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist chose not to seek reelection in 2006. In case you’ve forgotten, Frist obtained cats from shelters during medical school under the guise of adoption and then killed them for experiments. Ever eager to pander to the religious right, Frist later delivered a passionate speech on the Senate floor declaring Terri Schiavo looked quite healthy to him. Autopsies revealed Schiavo had been in a persistent vegetative state for quite some time.
Sen. George Allen of Virginia, embroiled over his use of a racial slur to describe an opponent’s staff member, lost a tight race to challenger Jim Webb. Washington’s premier political newsletter, the National Journal, had named Allen as the Republican front-runner for President as recently as 2005. In fact, all three of the aforementioned Senators were popular picks for the Republican nomination.
Traditionally conservative states South Dakota, Missouri and Arizona also dealt surprising blows to the conservative movement. South Dakota rejected a complete ban of abortions by a 55-45 margin. Arizona voters defeated a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a man-woman institution 51-49. Voters in Missouri passed an amendment in support of stem cell research by the same margin. Preying on prejudice and fear seems to be losing its viability in electoral politics. The times, they are a changin’.
In a telling move, Donald Rumsfeld announced his resignation the day after the election. The defense secretary, who said that American government knew where Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction were located and that it was doubtful the war would last longer than six months, is finally gone.
Not surprisingly, President Bush held the announcement after the election to avoid political damage and actually admitted to doing so.
A week prior to the elections, Bush told reporters that Rumsfeld and Cheney would be with him until the end of his term in 2008. At a press conference after the announcement of Rumsfeld’s resignation, reporters were curious about the clear contradiction.
Bush said: “I did not want to make a major decision in the final days of the campaign. The only way to answer that question [regarding Rumsfeld and Cheney], and get it on to another question, was to give you that answer.” Moments later, he admitted he had been talking with Rumsfeld about his resignation during this time period. Punk’d, America!
The work that lies ahead of America is daunting. American credibility abroad has dissipated almost entirely. Attacks on human rights and civil liberties have made our nation less free. We are less safe at home because of our involvement in Iraq. The rich have become much richer, and the poor poorer. People like Jack Abramoff, Tom DeLay and Dick Hastert have wielded far too much influence in our government for far too long.
I think I like our chances with the new folks in charge a lot better. And it seems like America agrees with me. Overwhelmingly.
Posted by dwright at November 14, 2006 07:16 PM
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