Posted on 11/23/2010 1:01:37 AM PST by paudio
While it's correct that some key parts of the Democratic coalitionyoung voters and African-Americans among themdidn't perform as they did in 2008, evidence emerging as the dust settles from this month's election suggests the bigger hole in the side of the Democratic ship came from moderates in the political center who didn't show up. (Those absences were in addition to the wave of independent swing voters also from the center who, exit polls showed, turned out but switched their votes to the Republicans.)
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
Years ago the Weekly Reader (for teens) had a liberal vs conservative test to take in the classroom. My SStudies teacher had us all take it, and we had one! conservative, and it wasn’t me.
I went home and asked my mom the questions, and she answered them all opposite me, and explained her answers, but I had to ask to borrow the one copy the class had. I’m sure most of the other kids didn’t do that.
That was when I first learned what sounded wonderful simply might not work. For instance, I remember one of the questions was should there be two parties or should there be a plethora of candidates to choose from. That sounded good to me, until my mom told me that meant that a candidate would be elected who didn’t have the approval of most of the people.
I can promise you that class probably votes republican today.
Independents are not all moderates who stay home every other election or switch allegiances every 2 years.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Interesting; it is more likely that you would have coalition governments which would need the support of at least half the people.
As our economy continues to sink, young people are going to be driven into directions we haven’t seen for decades. It will be interesting (and a bit depressing) to watch.
You make a valid point, although we don't register by political party, I'd tell anyone who asked, that I am independent. That said, I've never voted for a democrat and no liberals with the exception of McCain.
Here in Illinois, our state has just elected a so called "republican" to fill the U.S. Senate seat. He won without my vote because he is the ultra liberal POS, Mark Kirk. I voted for the Libertarian, Mike Labno, the only candidate on the ballot who was pro life. The first time ever for me voting Libertarian by the way. Labno received just over 2% of the vote.
I am an Independent myself, way to the right of Republicans.
Simple!!! Blacks and Hispanics failed to turn out and vote for one good, real, true reason. First Hispanics want nothing to do with “flim/flam/failure” POTUS Obama and.....the Black folk with smarts realize that Obama is a total failure and will be causing Black Americans pain for the next fifty years. It is really amazing that Black folks cannot fathom that Obama could care less about them as long as he got their votes. But.....the Democrat Party has been doing the same thing to American Blacks for the last fifty years and....the poor folks are still chained to bottom of the economic totem pole!!! Sad for Blacks and sad for America!!! Who knows? Maybe one day they will wake up and figure it out!!!
No Mystery at all.
Those that wanted America to heal and move forwarded voted for removing the dems and installing repibs. Those that were die hard socialist wanting America to continue heading towards Europe Lite voted for the dems and millions who would have normally voted for the dems stayed away because they were so ashamed for having voted for Obama in 08...
jourbalists: those who mindlessly run in circles
Right.
The masses who voted for O in the first place remind me of Cinderella in the fairy tale. They had ONE simple caveat and forgot even THAT!! They forgot to get leave the ball by midnight! Their coach returned to being a pumpkin and the coachmen became mice again. They are back at the dusty hearth wondering what the h^%$ happened.
The DNC rousted them for the last Presidential election. The rank and file went out like good little robots and did as directed, NO questions asked. (Frankly, it could be NO other way with these voters, because the DNC is terrified of actually ‘informing’ them for fear theyd begin to ask some home questions)
Anyway, these are voters who have to be prodded and babysat through the entire process. After these knuckleheads voted for O, they instantly reverted to type and went back to sleep. Magic was supposed to maintain the status quo, and they would all live happily after!!! So typical.
Minority America understands the political system in this country about as well as they understand economics.... its all hoobie dust and smoke to them!!
Many precincts had only 80% turnout from some cemetery districts.
Have you no dead relatives whose opinion you once valued? Were you so estranged from them in life, that you don't know how they would address the issues facing women, children, and select minority groups in this fascist land of ours?
Are not the departed absent? Hello! That's why absentee ballots were invented, dummy! But don't you worry, come 2012, those who shuffled off the mortal coil will once again shuffle their absentee ballots into stuffed ballot boxes, as and where needed.
Senate Democrats including typically mild-mannered Bill Nelson of Florida lit into President Barack Obama during an unusually tense air-clearing caucus session on Thursday, senators and staffers told POLITICO.
Nelson told colleagues Obamas unpopularity has become a serious liability for Democrats in his state and blamed the president for creating a toxic political environment for Democrats nationwide, according to two Democrats familiar with his remarks.
It was a raucous caucus, said one Democratic senator, who spoke on condition of anonymity because closed-door sessions are not supposed to be discussed with outsiders.
Nelson declined to respond when asked about the incident Thursday night, saying he was in a hurry to leave the Capitol to catch a flight. His spokesman didnt return a request for comment. In interviews after the marathon three-hour meeting, several senators and senior aides told POLITICO that Nelson was just one of several senators to express anger at White House missteps and air deep concerns about their own political fates if Obama and the Democratic Party leadership cant turn things around by 2012.
Added one veteran senator: It was the most frank exchange of views Ive ever seen. Several senators expressed the opinion that Obama needed to show more passion, while party liberals renewed their complaint that Obama should abandon the pretense of bipartisanship in the face of Minority Leader Mitch McConnells intransigence and what they consider the Kentucky Republicans blatantly political tactics aimed at making Obama a one-term president.
Others said Democratic leaders need to clearly spell out what they believe are the motivations behind the Republicans' positions: that they are beholden to special interests, who bankroll their campaigns. If Democrats keep losing the message war, they worry, they will be wiped out in 2012. There was a lot of passion in that room, one senator said. The reason is because the public is with us on our policies, but theyre not getting the message.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who along with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders had met with Obama at the White House earlier in the day, calmly presided over the gripe session, sources say, allowing members to have their say.
Reid, who barely survived a challenge from tea party favorite Sharron Angle, has already taken steps to improve his own messaging operation, tapping New York Sen. Chuck Schumer to run the communications and policy operations of the Democratic Caucus in the next Congress.
With 21 Democrats and two independents facing reelection in 2012, Reid and the White House will be forced to deal with skittish Democrats eager to see a sharpened political operation. But the complaints are not new.
Over the past year, Senate Democrats have expressed dissatisfaction with Obamas policy priorities, especially his determination to ram through a health care bill against the objections of party conservatives like Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb).
The caucuss left wing, including Vermont independent Bernie Sanders, have argued the opposite point: that Obamas timidity has led to the defection of liberals and young people turned off by Obama compromises on the public option and economic stimulus. Thursdays confrontation reminded some of a February 2010 showdown between Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Obamas senior adviser David Axelrod after the presidents question-and-answer session with senators.
An irate Franken, witnesses told POLITICO at the time, dressed down Axelrod and the White House for failing to provide a clearer sense of direction on health reform and other large legislative initiatives.
In today’s society, I was thinking more along the lines of ‘gerbil-o-list.’
I don't think you have to hope any longer with Pelosi getting the vote for minority leader by 143 to 50.
Democrats showing they still don't get it - In the House, they endorse a discredited regime.
...the bigger hole in the side of the Democratic ship came from moderates in the political center who didn't show up. (Those absences were in addition to the wave of independent swing voters also from the center who, exit polls showed, turned out but switched their votes to the Republicans.)Thanks paudio, and Happy Thanksgiving.
> I hope the Dhims will misread the election by believing that 0bama should turn even more to the left.Don't worry, they will.
There are always Rinos but the Dino is extinct.
There were plenty of very young voters who thought it was “cool” to vote for a “black” man. They were too immature to realize that the “black man” was truly neither black nor a man but a mixed race manchild who would never be an adult and what matters is not skin color but ability and maturity, two areas where the manchild scores a zero, hence the nickname by which many refer to him.
It is truly sad what has happened to the “African-American” community. I know black people who are wonderful, congenial, down to Earth, honest and caring individuals whom I humbly welcome to sit at my table anytime I have a chance to but they do NOT support the liberal agenda. Those who do support the liberal agenda are throwing away the great opportunity offered to them and pursuing a dream that will become a nightmare. There is little more that can be squeezed from the Blame Whitey turnip, it is nearly dry.
I haven’t figured out why the enemy-media seems so hell bent on destroying Palin. Yes, she’s a threat the the liberal orthodoxy, but in the event that she decides not to run, which I don’t think that she will, the liberals in the enemy-media will be behind the 8-ball when the Palin backed candidate emerges.
That’s my suspicion, is that she is out there recruiting someone who will run, with her support, and they will win easily against the failure of Zero. It’s not the Huckster, Romney, Rudy, crowd. It’s going to be an Eric Cantor, Paul Ryan, or even Bobby Jindal type. Someone who is solid, below the radar, but with a strong record of achievement.
Who that is, I don’t know. But I think Palin enjoys dancing rings around the media, while they spit an sputter in rage. The more she does it, the more irrational they become.
Sort of like a deflector. They focus on her, and the true candidate emerges without getting pilloried early on. That’s my estimation of what she’s doing.
She reminds them of Reagan, so they're afraid. I'm not saying she's the same as or another Reagan, but she has enough of his characteristcs that they want to denigrate her at every opportunity.
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