Back in the ’90s, I used to watch this show called “The McLaughlin Group” every Friday night on PBS. It was five political analysts arguing about the week’s events. Two McLaughlin alumni have great post-election analysis articles online today.
First of all, Fred Barnes of the Weekly Standard has an article entitled Post Mortem: Why the Republicans Got Shellacked in the Midterms. Now, Barnes is very conservative and I normally find myself disagreeing with him quite a bit, but this time he nailed it. He spelled out perfectly the reasons why the Republicans lost. It’s worth a read, regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.
Meanwhile, McLaughlin alum Eleanor Clift has an article speculating on the direction a Nancy Pelosi-led House will take next year. Again, right on. The Democrats have a choice in 2007. They can open all kinds of investigations and attempt to get revenge on the Republicans for 12 years of rule; or, they can look toward the future and come up with innovative ways to lead this country in a positive direction. The Democrats had better do the latter if they expect my vote in the 2008 elections.
Here in Tennessee, Harold Ford Jr. lost and I’m not surprised. I knew he was going to lose when several hardcore Democrats told me within the past week that they DIDN’T plan to vote for Ford. They’re upset with his corporate-friendly/Bush-friendly votes on the energy bill of 2005, the bankruptcy bill of 2005, the Iraq war, and the wiretapping bill of 2006. “He’s a Republican posing as a Democrat,” they told me. I understand their sentiment – the only reason I voted for him is because I wanted the Republicans to lose the Senate. If Ford runs for Lamar Alexander’s seat when it comes up, I may very well vote for Ford’s primary opponent, and maybe even Alexander (if he runs again) over Ford in the general election.
That’s all for now. Glad this election is behind us.