2010 Elections - Quick Thoughts

Here are some quick thoughts that popped in my mind on the recent elections. Yes, the GOP did well overall and yes, the GOP missed opportunities in Colorado and Nevada. Yes, we have heard the Monday morning quarterbacks lament our weak candidates in states like Nevada and Delaware. I won’t even argue that those candidates had their weaknesses, but sometimes I wonder, how it is Democrats can nominate less than stellar candidates, year in and year out, get them elected and we say nothing?

Take Nevada, Sharron Angle may not have been the best candidate but in watching Harry Reid in his debate with her, I saw an old man, incoherent and simply not very knowledgable on the big issues. After some four decades in politics, the best one can say about Harry Reid is that his job is to grow government on a national basis, bring home the goodies to the local Casinos and trade favors for favors with other Senators. Beyond that, the man knows nothing about policies and he didn’t look all that bright when he went face to face with Angle. Can anyone really argue that Carly Fiorina is not smarter than Barbara Boxer, who could not even get the endorsement of her own hometown newspaper because she is soooo dumb? Hey if these guys were so bright, why are they in the mess that we are in? The lesson is that in certain areas of the country, dumb and incompetent Democrats get elected. And they vote for policies that are ruinous for the rest of us. Neither Patty Murray or Barbara "don't call me maam" Boxer are the brightest bulbs in the United States Senate.

As for the GOP, they made no real headway on the West, and lost good opportunities in Colorado and Nevada. Interesting, those GOP candidates who did better than the national average among minorities, did on the average better than those candidates who did not exceed national average. In Wisconsin, Republicans candidates garnered some 45% better than the national average among minorities by comfortable margins. In Illinois, they ran below the national average and it may have cost us a governor seat. If Illinois candidates actually met their Wisconsin candidate numbers, Mark Kirk would have won easily and Bill Brady would be the new governor of Illinois. Note: Marco Rubio cleaned up on Hispanics in Florida and Rick Perry in Texas grabbed nearly 40% of Hispanics in Texas while running away with an easy victory. There is a lesson there somewhere.

On a more serious note, the battle for 2012 is already on and I would suggest that one reads Dick Morris's recent article in the New York Post. The father of triangulation makes it clear that the GOP cannot compromise on key issues of taxes, cap and trade and Health care since compromise means victory for European-style socialism. It should be an interesting two years.