Yeah, I’m not happy about how the election turned out, either. But it isn’t going to be a disaster, and here’s why:
- Barack Obama is a smart man and a patriot, and so are his advisors. He may have very liberal ideological preferences, but his policies will be constrained by practicality.
- There’s another Presidential election four years from now, and there’s a congressional election two years from now. This country is too big and too strong to run into the ground in two years.
- Even with a Democratic majority in Congress, there are still checks and balances.
- Democrats are very unlikely to have a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, even with Sanders and Lieberman (Republicans will have at least 40 seats, and as of this morning they lead in all four uncalled races).
- The Blue Dog Democrats still hold the balance of power in the House, which means nothing gets passed without at least a few fiscal conservatives signing on.
- None of the five conservative Justices (Roberts, Alito, Scalia, Thomas, and Kennedy) on the Supreme Court are expected to retire in the next four years.
- The Republican Party could use some time in the wilderness. We’ve strayed too far from our roots as the party of limited government. This election is likely to provide the shock the party needs to toss the old leadership overboard and allow principled conservatives and libertarians to rise to the top.
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Scalia has been rumored to be thinking of retiring.
CosmicConservative’s last blog post..A beautiful new day?
I hadn’t heard that, and I hope it’s not true.
Good post, Eric. It parallels generally what I think we can expect for two-year and four-year upshot.
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
I might just pack up and move to a truly free country, like Taiwan…..Â
Well, probably not. But coincidentally, I just got an offer for a 4 year stint in Taiwan.  I’m about 99% sure I won’t take it, but the timing sure is interesting. And with the specter of increased taxes looming, there could be some extra incentive. It’s something to ponder for sure….
I like your post Eric, my sentiments exactly.
One big problem with your very first point, and one that seems to be pretty common. Obama is a smart guy, maybe politically savvy, a pragmatist, whatever. Maybe he WON’T propose a lot of liberal insanity.
The lunatic asylum run by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid ? Oh hell yeah they will try and pass every bit of claptrap liberal bullshit they can. And do you really think Obama will, what ? Veto their pet projects ?
Come on. The only thing standing between us and a very very far left agenda is the filibuster in the Senate, and I think the liklihood of success in that endeavor is no better than 50-50.
And counting on the Blue Dog Democrats ? I’ll believe that when I see it.
I’m only counting on the Blue Dogs and Obama’s sense of responsibility to the practical to slow down the *terrible* ideas, like nationalizing 401(k)s, or a full immediate withdrawl from Iraq, or renegotiating NAFTA. The merely bad ideas, like his tax plan and his health care plan, we’ll be likely to be stuck with until the next election, but the country has survived worse.
Incidentally, the madhouse schemes from Pelosi and Reid are precisely where I have the most hope of the Blue Dogs helping. There are ideological divisions within the Democratic party which must be bridged before they can pass anything too insane.
2 things:
-> Advisers (even advisers for the congressional Dems) will remember the ’94 election and strenuously warn against any sort of overreach on the part of Congress or the President. Oh, sure, they’ll strive for their agenda, and there will be enthusiasts who will want to repeat FDR’s rapid implementation, but there will be enough cautious players to slow down the leftist momentum (which they don’t have outside of one part of their party).
-> The Dems in Congress will actually cause some gridlock to Obama. They’ll have their own agenda (slightly different from Obama’s) and try to own him to get him to pass it. So, in the end, they’ll be hindered by infighting.
At least that’s what I’m hoping for. The idea of the Executive and Legislative branches walking in lock-step for two years legislatively to a Glorious Socialist Future scares the sh*t out of me.
The world looks remarkably different from the Oval Office than it does when you’re stumping for votes in a San Francisco living room or a union hall in Zanesville. We really have no idea whatever President Obama will do although, judging by the transition team, the chief of staff he’s picked, and the names that have been floated as prospective cabinet members, it may look quite a bit like a third Clinton term.
Incidentally, the madhouse schemes from Pelosi and Reid are precisely where I have the most hope of the Blue Dogs helping. There are ideological divisions within the Democratic party which must be bridged before they can pass anything too insane.
There are and the Democrat’s larger majority in the house is going to be offset by that. I was under the impression that the Republicans had been relatively united but now that I have been watching them a little more closely in Congress I have discovered a couple of camps as well. Both parties have splintered it seems. I believe this to be a good thing.
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