First of all, people want a choice. Ideally, there should be at least two distinct alternatives. As far as the Team D sweep over Team R, the alternatives were never all that distinct, but ever since about 2003, it became harder and harder to tell the difference. Yet, even at the point where there is precious little difference, it then comes down to change for its own sake, as in “Throw the bums out.”
To be sure, a conservative could always (at least since the late 1950’s) ask himself if there were any difference between driving off a cliff (into socialism) at 50 miles per hour as a Republican, or at 90 miles per hour as a Democrat. But since such thinking is far too negative, we could at least look at individual issues—and individual politicians.
Team R lost because it had no message other than “Stay the course.” OK, but what was the course? No immigration reform, pandering to our enemies, increased government spending, a flawed war in Iraq, etc. Add to that a real shortage of manly leadership, and turning its back on its core constituency, and you have an excellent recipe for disaster. Amazingly, Team R didn’t realize that Team D did NOT have to offer anything specific. All it had to do was ask “Had enough?”
The so-called pundits can wax eloquent all they want about this loss not being as bad as many midterm reverses, but who cares? A loss is still a loss. Besides, for all their hot air, the experts don’t seem to know too much.
Look at the case of former Senator George Allen (R-VA). His seat was not supposed to even be in contention. It was an absolute lock. More than that, this lightweight was spoken of as presidential material, for heaven’s sake! And what caused his downfall? Simple: He was found out.
I believe that his use of “macaca” was just made-up on the spot, and he had no idea that in some obscure way, it could be regarded as a racial slur. When he was attacked for this, he could have fought back, saying that he is not a racist as would be borne out by his entire public life, and he refuses to be dragged down into this nonsense, and wants to focus on real issues. But, instead, he was exposed as weak and feckless, as he seemed to be awaiting talking points from his handlers.
He capped it all off by graciously conceding defeat, although one is reminded of what they say about good losers…
As to the Iraq situation, many have asked that if Rumsfeld was expendable a few days after the election, couldn’t the “genius” Karl Rove have seen that jettisoning this tired Robert McNamara wannabee technocrat before the election might have helped?
Team R could have easily stayed in power if it had a message, and for all its “reaching out,” should have mostly reached out, and supported by votes and positions, its core constituency. Like it or not, it will take decades for the hapless ethnics to drop the Dems in any quantity, regardless of how much the R’s try to convince them. If the Blacks haven’t realized that the Dems were the segregationist party, reinvented as the populists in the 1960’s, but standing for nothing more than more socialism, that benefits the few at the expense of the many, and if the Jews still haven’t got the memo, what more can the R’s do than satisfy those already on board?
True enough, but they failed at even that. They richly deserved to lose, as the greatest truism of American politics proves itself once again:
The people get the government they deserve.