The Morning After Midterms 2010
The morning after an election always reminds me of the day after a night of Spring thunderstorms. People wake up and begin to assess the damage, expecting to find the land scoured and the earth torn apart – but instead finding the landscape tranquil. Yes it has changed; an old treasured oak tree has fallen here, or a river has changed its course there – but for every loss there is a gain. The previous night’s winds have uncovered green shoots, and the calm air is crisp and clean – primed for new things.
Although I am very happy about the general outcome of the election and what it portends for the future of our nation, there were losses. The primary system has taken a hit by the successful write-in candidacy of Lisa Murkowski even though it survived in Florida with the failure of Charlie Crist. Some damaged trees that deserved to be felled by the storm are still standing: Barney Frank – co-engineer of the housing bubble and following meltdown, and Harry “The Iraq War is Lost” Reid. Reid’s pet raccoon Chris Coons won in Delaware – a weak sapling in the forest that is unlikely to withstand another storm. Then there is California with “Call me Madam” Barbara Boxer and the walking Avadart ad Jerry Brown… Weeds in the underbrush that the storm should have cleared but didn’t.
But for each of these losses there are gains. Gov. Nikki Haley in South Carolina. Senator Rand Paul in Kentucky that sent commentators on MSNBC into a frothing fit last night. Gov. Susana Martinez of New Mexico. Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois. Sen. Pat Toomey in the Keystone State. Even sentimental favorite former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Jon Runyan successfully switched careers to win a house seat in New Jersey, exemplifying the most under-reported story of the election so far: the massive sweep of state legislatures by the Republicans.
Yes the general contours of the political landscape are there; storms don’t move mountains – at least in one go – but things have changed regardless.
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