I know, I know, Republicans are jubilant about their wins yesterday. And we progressive Democrats are worried - why didn't our voters show up? What does this say about President Obama? What does it say about the Republican party? The 2010 elections?
And in steps Michael Steele - admittedly it was a good night for him - and says the GOP is "transcendent" (I guess meaning back from the dead in this case?).
At any rate, everybody is way off base and missing the boat here. Most of all Steele and the GOP. If they think they are on the verge of a political earthquake of their making here, they are sorely mistaken...
First, let's look - factually - at these few election races:
In New Jersey, every single incumbent governor seeking reelection since Tom Kean won his in 1985 has had a tough time. It's always because of the same issues, too: Property taxes and auto insurance rates. Jim Florio narrowly lost his re-election bid to Christie Whitman in 1993. Christie Whitman barely beat back Jim McGreevy four years later in 1997. So, it's no surprise that Governor Corzine had a tough time last night. And if Chris Christie can't find a solution to those two problems, there is every likelyhood he'll find himself in a similar situation in four years. How transcendant is that?
In Virginia, we've learned that you actually need a good candidate to have a shot at winning. I have a great deal of respect for Creigh Deeds, but nothing about him remotely screams "political charisma," nothing. And that matters. McConnell was a much better candidate. Exactly how was the Republican party transcending anything there?
In New York State, we have the bullseye that matters most for 2010. This is not spin. It is not a GOP with new mojo ready to take on our popular President and his supposedly unpopular, socialist agenda. The loss of NY 23 is the definition of why the Republicans will not win control of Congress next year, and - in fact - plays right into that likely result: The conservative, right-wingers are emboldened by the moral victory of chasing a moderate Republican from the race, but look what they did! They put one of the most Republican districts in the Northeast into the hands of the Democrats.
The Republicans are doing something they rarely do. They are having a civil war. The idealogues that were told for years they were all important to the party are all that's left of the dedicated rank and file. The few pragmatists remaining are holding on for dear life trying to plug the leak in the sinking ship. And now the right is further emboldened. And they will move to nominate freaks all over the country. And the freaks will lose to Democrats - because the country really does want health care reform, they really do like the President, and they want him to succeed. And - most of all - they don't like the right wing freaks, no matter how loud their tea parties are.
Eventually, as with all political parties in the wilderness, the GOP will get its act together. But not next year. They're not remotely close to figuring out who they want to be when they grow up. I wonder what Steele will say when these dreams of control fall woefully short.
Hey Michael Steele, your Republicans are not remotely transcendant. They can't even transcend themselves.