Democrats’ 2014 defeat is worse than it was in 2010

The Washington Post ^ | E.J. Dionne

[right-wing agnostic]

For Democrats, the 2014 election was not the 2010 Republican landslide. It was worse.

Four years ago, the economy was still ailing, and a new wave of conservative activism in the form of the tea party was roiling politics. This time, the economy was better, ideological energies on the right had abated — and Democrats suffered an even more stinging defeat. They lost Senate seats in presidential swing states such as Iowa, Colorado and North Carolina. They lost governorships in their most loyal bastions, from Massachusetts to Maryland to Illinois.

After a defeat of this scope, the sensible advice is usually, “Don’t overreact.” In this case, such advice would be wrong. Something — actually, many things — went badly for the progressive coalition on Tuesday. Its supporters were disheartened and unmotivated, failing to rally to President Obama and his party’s beleaguered candidates. And voters on the fence were left unpersuaded.

[VerySadAmerican]

Mass elected a republican governor? I missed that.

[ComputerGuy]

Republicans will throw away the opportunity they have been handed if they mistake the general dissatisfaction with Obama’s leadership that they exploited for a specific turn to right-wing remedies.

On the contrary, Dipstick, the Republicans will throw away the opportunity the same way they always do: by giving us more of their Democrat-lite, touchy-feely, go-along, get-along crap.

[afraidfortherepublic]

You betcha!

[jocon307]

“I missed that.”

The corrupt, lazy, loser Martha “I can’t stand outside Fenway Park in the cold just to shake people’s hands” Coakley lost again, bless her heart.

It was a race that went almost unmentioned, even on political junkie media. Why? Because the R was leading her the entire time, and to discuss that might make Deval “mini-Obama” Patrick look bad.

[wayoverontheright]

The left is so surprised. So shocked.

They still can’t bring themselves to blame their policies, but then, they’ll never do that.

They can blame Harry Reid for the fact that they were blindsided. The Tea Party had to sit back and just take it, as Harry had everything blocked up in the Senate. They were seething, lying in wait for the glorious day when they could actually do something about their plight. Remember the stories about how the Tea Party had become a non-factor?

The Tea Party showed up Tuesday, with pent up anger and enthusiasm.

The defeat can be blamed on Obama and liberal governance. The shock for the defeat can be blamed on Harry Reid.

[Jim Noble]

Yes, the Tea Party showed up on Tuesday. We were that worried about more Obamunism, and needed to do anything to try to make to stop.

Had I ever run into Scott Brown or one of his surrogates (and you know, the state is not that big), or if they had ever knocked on my door, I would have told him that he had to give us a reason to vote for him (I voted for him anyway, of course).

But I fear the lesson will be lost on the “leadership”. We cannot win without “them”, but they also cannot win without us.

[fortheDeclaration]

The American People elected the GOP to stop Obama and the Democrats from destroying the nation!

[gusty]

“Moreover, as Bill Clinton showed after the Democrats’ 1994 midterm defeat, the surest way to beat conservatives is to confront them when they press for steep cuts in government programs that voters like.”

This is the most important quote from the article. The reason, Dionne is right on with this quote. The onus is on us the voters to maintain the momentum. I've seen this happen time after time. We vote for smaller government on election day, but when our guys try to implement smaller government, a lot of the same voters waverer and scream bloody murder. If smaller government means cut the other guys handouts, but leave mine alone, well, the whole exercise becomes one of futility. The day I see another government shutdown, and the reaction from the public is a collective yawn, then I will know we are on the right road. Last time we played right into the Left’s hand when people were storming barricades when some monuments and parks were shutdown. If we had reacted with a so-what, the Left would have been finished right then and there.

[Viennacon]

“Yet the one thing that will save the Democrats and ignite progressives will be a Republican Party that ignores the extent to which its candidates — notably Gardner in Colorado and Sen.-elect Joni Ernst in Iowa — had to tack away from the right to win their signal victories.”

BS. Gardner flip flopped on a personhood amendment, that was about it. Joni Ernst’s principles never changed during the campaign, she just made the entire thing about the candidates themselves rather than what Braley wanted it to be about.

[randita]

I’d be shocked to see any real cuts in growth. I’d be delighted just to see cuts in the RATE of growth, but even if those are proposed, people squeal to high heaven.

[Buckeye McFrog]

He forgot to mention that “the media is constantly working triple-overtime to make Democrats look like the greatest thing since chocolate cake.”

[ScottinVA]

Sounds like perennial loser Martha Coakley has become the Charlie Crist of the Northeast.

[Interesting Times]

Democrats had pieces of an economic message. But they need a comprehensive and more ambitious answer for voters angry about stagnating incomes. They took out their rage on the party in the White House.

Dionne is certain that socialism is much better at providing jobs, goods and services than a market-based economy. Good luck selling that one to normal people.