Thoughts on Election 2010

Many non-politicos will not understand the results of last night’s elections. Yes, most will know the Republicans took the House of Representatives, the Democrats hung on to the Senate, and the results of some local races, but the true historical weight of this election will be beyond most people’s comprehension. The Republican wave was of epic proportions; the last time a party gained that many seats in one fell swoop was 1948; the Republicans will have more Representatives than any time since the Truman Administration. Republicans have not won this many seats since 1938, not quite halfway through FDR’s presidency. This was a once in a lifetime election. Any explanation you hear that attempts to explain this result that relies on common factors to every election is obviously weak and incomplete.

There have been recessions. There have been wars and corruption and broken promises. Presidents have always had to deal with midterm losses. None of these explain the Democrats massive loss. The absolute arrogance of this Administration and the 111th Congress has finally pushed the patience of the American people past the breaking point. Independents abandoned the Left yesterday.

Let me put it to you this way: we are all of two years past the age of George W. Bush and the Republicans are more electable than ever. What does that say about the last two years?

The policy of “government knows best” is insulting to most people. The Democrats mistakenly took anger at George W. Bush for approval of massive government intervention; they could not have been more wrong. A responsible government would have listened to the will of the people during the ObamaCare debate. Rather, the government forced an unread bill down the throats of a population fiercely opposed. This is why the Republicans slaughtered the Democrats. The Stimulus, the bailouts, and ObamaCare proved to everyone but the most die hard progressives that the government cannot save us but is far more likely to exacerbate the problems we face.

So where do we go from here? The Republicans must keep in mind that they were strongly rejected over the last four years due to their irresponsibility, in particular in terms of public spending. The only reason they have power again is because the Democrats were even worse. If the Republicans hope to keep their power and win the Presidency two years from now, they absolutely must provide responsible, constitutional answers to the abuses of the Obama Administration. ObamaCare must go; even though the Republicans cannot get rid of it until Obama is gone and the Senate switches, conservatives must keep pushing for repeal. Compromises can be made, but never at the expense of the People or the Constitution. Where Obama crosses those lines, he must be opposed to the fullest.

The American people have lost their confidence in our government, mostly because our government officials have exceeded their constitutional bounds to benefit their own electoral chances or to impose social change upon the people. The volatility of the last few elections should be a concern for everyone, regardless of what you think of the latest electoral result. If our government continues to act in illegitimate ways, the legitimacy of the government will be annihilated; god only knows what dangers would follow.