100 what-happened threads -- this is as good a place to put my $0.02 as any.
1. I think the historical pattern is now crystal clear. Any armed conflict we get ourselves into has to be wrapped up in 3-5 years or forget it. Along those lines, the American people have no tolerance for half-fighting whether it's in jungles or deserts. They support the President when he prosecutes a war vigorously, and desert him when he putters around.
Corrective action: President Bush should act aggressively to quash bombers and other 'wehrwulf'-type activity over there, something we've been doing with too much sensitivity and wussiness.
2. Congress of late has been entirely failing to enact any segment of the conservative agenda. Tax reform? Social Security reform? Border reform? No go on any of it. IMO the natural tendency of incumbant Congresscritters is to avoid taking decisive action out of fear of losing their position - they've just been reminded that failure to act is an action, too.
Corrective action: A fresh leader will have to wait until the next cycle and drive a new 'Contract with America'-style agenda. It'll have to be someone fresh because right now people have little confidence Republicans would actually enact changes!
3. Inter-GOP fighting divided the party with the effect (here and in the voting booth) Republicans were as angry with each other as they were at moonbat leftists.
Corrective action: none. This is a natural result of incumbency and of our failure to act on our agenda. People grew accustomed to the idea that we controlled Congress and felt comfortable going after fellow GOPers; the Congress felt confortable in their offices and didn't see a need to do what they were elected to do. The actions and nominees of the RAT party will remind us why allowing them to be in charge is a Bad Idea; and the shock to the GOP leadership will remind them that complacency and inaction do not win.
In this list are not: illicit voting, MSM lies, Soros, or moon phases. These things happen *every* election and they haven't stopped us until now. Neither do I blame Rove, Rumsfeld, or even Rice (although I wonder WHAT happens with otherwise solid people when they get assigned to work with the State Dept.). These guys just work for W, they don't set policy themselves.
Oh yea, one last thing: trust the people. Talk of "sheeple" and such is RAT talk. They're the party that trusts a government elite to run everything because they think the people are too dumb to decide for themselves. Since we're the party of individual responsibility, we have to recognize that as free Americans people vote as they do for their own reasons, not always because they agree with us or drool with the DUers.
Electoral politics is all about the swing voters, and they are simply sick of even HEARING about Iraq. They voted for a change, ergo, Republicans out of power.
I'll add another small one, the "culture of corruption" meme did take hold and was probably crucial in several elections.
I think its not a good idea to think up of all these other issues which probably didnt matter nearly as much. Its mostly about Iraq. Everything else was a side issue. Immigration, spending, the swingers dont really care as much as we do. Lets fix the Iraq thing, quickly. Then fight to keep what we did right, and there is plenty of that, including upcoming supreme court judges.