Revisionist? No, I was right there, nearly 28-years old and voting for Dole. Republicans fielded a weak candidate because nobody felt confident about beating Clinton. "Might as well run ol' man Dole. It's his turn and we're going to lose anyways" was what the Republican establishment was thinking. Even if every Perot vote is added to Dole's numbers, Clinton still wins.
It's a little different this year. In 1996, the economy was booming and people were relatively optimistic. Today? Malaise, depression and anxiety. Yet the Republican front-runners are possibly the two worst candidates the party could field. We have Mitt Romney, a liberal with an 'R' next to his name who sends the base fleeing and Newt Gingrich, who retains the base and sends everyone else fleeing. In the worst economy since the Great Depression, the race seemed impossible to lose. I'm afraid we're going to find a way.
I was also once a 28 year old working on an election, but it was for Ford trying to keep that idiot Carter out of the White House. And believe me, the story is always the same. Conservatives will man-up and score a touchdown, but we won't put the game away. It was the same thing in the 80’s. In 1984, Reagan DID actually win by a landslide. We responded by going to sleep and letting the democraps win back the Senate in ‘86.
In 1994 I was up to my elbows in the mid terms. I could get anything I wanted. From contributions to bodies. It was like that across the country. We took back Congress and seemed poised to cut the head off the snake. Yet in 1996, the same people that had been willing to do anything in 1994, would hardly return calls.
As much as I despise liberals, I have to take my hat off to them for one thing: they will stick to it until they get what they want. If conservatives would ever stick to it and finish the job, we could straighten this country out. But I'm afraid every victory causes us to think we can go back to sleep. And then the process repeats.