[Vigilanteman]

Of course, they couldn't do much worse than congress has done the past 6 years in terms of controlling the deficit.

You'll be eating your words if they are even moderately successful at getting their pork barrel projects passed. Remember the bench marks as of election day 2006:

DJIA: 12,100
Average price of regular gas nationwide: $2.19/gallon
Unemployment: 4.4%
Annual inflation rate: 4.3%
Deficit as percent of GNP: 2.7%

[Carry_Okie]

Unemployment: 4.4%

An understated number given that many have left the workforce or taken a permanent downgrade in job status.

Annual inflation rate: 4.3%

You can have that inflation rate. Any more than 2% is a serious problem.

Deficit as percent of GNP: 2.7%

It's not terrible, but you should be using GDP and not include the account surplus of Social Security.

If things were as good as your post asserts, Bush would have had a landslide and Congress would be Republican. He didn't and it isn't.