Blue wave? More like Purple Puddle.
This is my analysis of the 2018 midterm election. You may have heard of it recently, and you knew I had to weigh in on that, right?
And lots of links mentioned. Lots of good information there.
Mentioned links:
OUCH! So how did the Dems Obama campaigned for do on #ElectionNight?
So Much for a ‘Blue Wave’—4 of the Biggest Midterm Takeaways
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — the 29-year-old socialist and media darling — wins seat in US House
Obama’s legacy of losing: Democrats decimated in Congress, DNC in disarray
Scott Walker loses bid for third term in Wisconsin
Stolen inflatable colon found in vacant home, Kansas City police say
Other links:
8 Big Takeaways From The Midterm Elections
Promising Pro-Life Wins In Alabama, West Virginia
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Show transcript
The 2018 midterm elections are over (well, mostly; there are still some outstanding votes being counted as I record this), and the results are that the Democrats won the House while Republicans held and even gained in the Senate. Also, Democrats made gains in the state governorships, although after the losses they sustained during the Obama years, they had nowhere else to go but up. Let’s take a look at some of the specifics.
First of all, it’s clear that Trump made voting great again, with some places meeting or exceeding turnouts for a Presidential year election. Trump wasn’t on the ballot, but his presence in the Oval Office certainly brought voters from both sides to the polls. Many of those who he campaigned for won their races.
The same cannot be said about Barack Obama. The guy went 0 for 4 with his endorsements. (OK, Stacey Abrams hasn’t quite lost the Georgia governor’s race as of this recording, but she’s down by enough at this point to leave the possibility of Brian Kemp winning without a runoff.) His star power did not work out very well.
Nor did that of actual media stars either. Endorsements from Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Oprah Winfrey, Sean “Diddy” Combs, and Beyoncé didn’t help their candidates win. Now, they certainly have every right to get their opinions heard and push for their candidates, but it might not be worth alienating a big chunk of your fan base by getting political. It’s not so much “shut up and sing”, but perhaps the advice “sing…just sing” or “talk” may not be a bad idea.
In the House, the Democrats picked up 63 seats. Oh wait, that’s how many seats Republicans gained in 2010. This supposed “blue wave” was a gain of 30 seats in the House (with a few outstanding). Not to mention a loss of (what looks like it’ll be) at least 3 seats in the Senate. Some folks are trying to spin the loss of the House as not as bad as it could have been, which is true, but a loss is still a loss. Somehow, running on a platform of holding back policies that have been growing the economy, and the promise of endless investigations (from the party that thought Hillary Clinton’s emails weren’t worth a sideways glance) was a winning strategy. It was in some places, but it wasn’t nearly the winner they expected it to be.
One of those House seats is being filled by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the new face of the economically and constitutionally illiterate Democratic majority. If adding $3 trillion a year to our debt via Medicare For All, and having government pay for other incredibly expensive “free” stuff, says “fiscal responsibility” to you, you might be a Democrat. And if abolishing the Electoral College seems like the way to protect minority voters better, you might not understand it.
Y’know, I had a Facebook friend remind me that the Republicans aren’t all that fiscally responsible themselves, and he’s right. It’s estimated that, if things keep going the way they are, the Trump years could add $8 trillion to the debt in 4 years. We just don’t have the money. As I’ve said here before, there’s not enough money in the country to pay off our current debt, never mind adding new debt to it. But my response is always the same; Democrats make Republicans look like amateurs. With Medicare For All and “free” college and healthcare, the Dems could add half that amount — $4 trillion – every single year. I hate being left with just saying that Republicans are merely less irresponsible than Democrats, but it does have the benefit of being very true.
Meanwhile in the Senate, the Kavanaugh Effect was in full force. Red-state Democrats who voted against his confirmation – Heidi Heitkamp, Joe Donnelly, Claire McCaskill, and Bill Nelson – all lost to Republican challengers. And the one Democrat who voted for confirmation – Joe Manchin – won re-election. That in itself accounted for the Republican Senate gains.
And by the way, speaking of Kavanaugh, the Senate Judiciary Committee released its final 414-page report of an investigation into those sexual misconduct allegations. After interviewing more than 40 people who would have had knowledge of them, the committee found “no evidence” to corroborate the claims. And not just the claims of Blasey Ford, but any of his accusers. Democrats are hoping you don’t hear that or remember it.
And by the way, speaking of sexual misconduct allegations, Keith Ellison will be Minnesota’s next attorney general, despite allegations, with corroborating evidence, of domestic abuse. I wonder if these are the same Democrats whose votes hinged on the Kavanaugh hearings. They say they’ll believe all survivors, unless it’s bad for their politics.
And as I said, Democrats lost 12 governorships under Obama, so they had nowhere else to go but up. As of this recording, they’ve gained 7, including, unfortunately, Scott Walker. This is one of those races where Trump’s appearance didn’t seem to help. Neither, apparently, did going from a budget deficit to a billion dollar surplus, while at the same time cutting taxes by over $2 billion. No, Democrats were so energized this time around that the voted against one of the few state success stories, financially speaking. Let’s see how that works out for ya’.
So definitely not a Blue Wave, but certainly Trump has his work cut out for him. And if another vacancy opens up on the Supreme Court, well, Republicans are certainly in a better position than they were before. Once again, as much good news as there has been over the last 2 years, the Supreme Court is the big reason I voted for Trump, and, even though I cringe a lot at him, I’m glad I voted for him.
And finally, in case you still have some anxiety about the election, here’s one story sure to warm your heart…or something. The “stolen colon” — an inflatable colon weighing 150 pounds and costing more than $4,000 — was poached from the bed of a parked pickup truck in a Kansas City neighborhood on Oct. 18, according to the Colon Cancer Coalition. It has since been recovered after an intestine, er, intensive search. I am not making this up.
The post Episode 234: The 2018 Midterm Election Round-up appeared first on Consider This!.