I know what you guys are thinking. What has he been smoking?
No, it’s true. The Republican take-over of the Senate is the best thing that could happen for progressives as we look towards 2016. Why? Because the Republicans will prove, in the next two years, that they unwilling to compromise and incapable of governing. Let’s remember several things:
- In 2016 the Republicans will have 24 Senate seats up for reelection, the Democrats only 10.
- By 2016 people will forget about the bundled roll-out of the Affordable Care website.
- If the economy stays close to where it is today, and it really is all about the economy, we won’t be in such bad shape.
- Nothing will get done over the next two years, which is the same as it has been. The federal government will be on autopilot, which may not be a bad thing.
- Obama’s numbers will rebound towards the end of his term, and the Republican numbers will nosedive as it becomes clear the Republicans are completely out of ideas.
My favorite part of the news coverage today is where McConnell and other Republicans are talking about how we will be able to move the country forward if Obama is only willing to compromise. This is the same McConnell who in Obama’s first term vowed to prevent any of his initiatives from passing so that the President wouldn’t look good.
The essence of propaganda, lest we forget, is to lie boldly and without shame, and to repeat the lie as often as possible. Oh yeah, there will be people who believe that it’s been Obama who has been the obstacle to compromise. In the famous words of Cher Horowitz, “as if!”
So, enjoy your little run at the top, my Republican friends. It’s not going to be so much fun when you actually have to DO something. See you in 2016.