There were few surprises at the end of Tuesday night. Americans from coast to coast decided they liked Republicans better than they liked Democrats. That is the way of the new era in politics where the electorate can turn on a dime. In 2008, after the victory of President Obama, some were proclaiming the death of the Republican Party. As Mark Twain said of a news story that actually concerned his cousin James Ross Clemens, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”
However, what happened to the Democrats could easily be described as a proverbial “blood bath.” Republicans felled Democrat after Democrat. Locally, Eighth District Congressman Jim Marshall was beaten. In the governor’s race none of the disconcerting news about Nathan Deal’s financial affairs or using his office for personal gain seemed to matter.
Voters just wanted change — and change they will have.
This phenomenon is not new, 20 presidents have lost control of at least one house of Congress. Six have lost the House and Senate, including President George W. Bush and President Bill Clinton. So what does all this mean for the country? As always many promises were made, from repealing the heath care bill to lowering taxes to cutting government spending to getting the economy back on track and cutting deficits. Unfortunately, all of the those goals, while laudable, will be hard to accomplish. The Republicans, like the Democrats, don’t have Tinker Bell’s magic wand.
To read the complete editorial, visit www.macon.com.