There is a lot of talk today about why the Dems won the NY26 race. It all focuses exclusively on the Paul Ryan budget.
While I agree that the Ryan is a big factor, I think it's only one factor of many. Instead, I think there is a cumulative effect happening that is really blowing up in the Republican's faces. Over the past year we've seen the following factors:
1) Big oil keeping their subsidies.
2) Public school teachers being treated as public enemies
3) A Republican governor refusing to work with protestors and the opposition - resorting to trickery to get his way repeatedly.
4) Steadfast refusal to look at tax increases. Everyone who has ever balanced a checkbook can see the obvious. Republicans can't.
5) After a campaign focused on job creation, no bill introduced to actually do any job creation.
6) Renewed focus on entities like NPR and Planned Parenthood. Not exactly the greatest threats to America right now.
7) Obama's victory over OBL, and the Republican reaction to it. They could not have looked any more childish or mean-spirited if they had tried.
The resurgence of the American Auto Industry. Repubs made sure everyone knew their position on the stimulus. Now that it seems to have been a really good idea, what conclusions can we draw about the party that's supposed to know all about business and money?
9) After much talk about the Texas miracle, and Texas talking about seceding from the union, we find half of Texas on fire and the Governor asking for relief.
There are probably even more that I'm forgetting, but the overall conclusion is that pretty much everything the Repubs have tried since their recent victories has been a disaster.
The big problem is that people voted them in as a protest against the state of the economy. Rather than understanding that, the Repubs decided the vote was a mandate for everything they have ever said. It was a huge overstep and misjudgement.
If they don't learn to walk their insanity back, it will be a short lived victory.
Z
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