Election Rap Up

The Republican Party did somewhat worse than the surge I expected two weeks ago. In the House I was pretty close to the mark with the Republicans picking up about 65 seats compared to the 70 seats I envisioned. The Democrats did better in the Senate than I expected by losing 6 seats for sure and possibly a seventh compared to the nine I expected them to lose. Nevertheless it was a good night for Shulmaven. The voters rightly held the Democrats responsible for the high unemployment we are now suffering from.

The big losers last night were obviously President Obama and the Democrats, but largely unnoticed in the press commentary was a string of defeats for Sarah Palin, who in her own way may have cost the Republicans Senate control. Palin favorites Christine O'Donnell in Delaware, Sharon Engle in Nevada and especially Joe Miller in Alaska all went down to defeat. Her stock has peaked and with that she will be less of player in 2012 than most people now imagine. Further, those defeats will make it easier for Republican regulars to bring the Tea Party into the fold and will, in liklihood, make the Tea Party more realistic with respect to future candidates. They will learn that winning is important.

Also beneath the radar was the silent war going on between Senators Chuck Schumer and Dick Durbin to replace Harry Reid as majority leader. With Reid's win a temporary truce has settled on the battlefield. Too bad, it would have been fun to watch, but for Shumer and Durban it has feel like coitus interruptus.