It is a good start. The Midterm elections are now over. And what seemed, early on, like another version of the 2016 election night debacle has since played out in a satisfying way. But it felt really ugly for a short time.
Mrs. Daily Kibitz and I were at a fun and fancy Election Night Party when the results began to manifest on the TV screens. The crowd was of a decided political Blue persuasion (and I helped provide some "blue" commentary). Expectations for the long-predicted "Blue Wave" were very high. After two years of living in TrumpWorld, everyone wanted to see the electoral push-back that would certify that our country wasn't going anywhere near 1932 Germany.
But by 11pm, the party was experiencing a collective sense of dread in the pit of our stomachs. Florida, which polls had Dems taking for Senate and Governor, was going Racist Red. Polls had also looked good for Indiana, but it flipped from Blue to Red. Missouri and North Dakota flipped Red. Even an indicted Republican Member of Congress was beating his opponent in upstate New York. Texan Beto O'Rourke, though a long-shot, conceded to Ted Cruz. Everything we knew or hoped for was wrong, again. Why, O Lord? Was Job a Never-Trumper?
TV talking heads spoke of a No-Wave, even a Red Tide. The Senate races had become a rout against the Democrats, with some experts suddenly predicting a GOP bump of 5 - 8 seats! The presumed House lock for Democrats was not assured. It was going to be a long night. Party glasses of prosecco were exchanged for tall tumblers of vodka and bourbon. Several attendees quietly left.
And then something happened. The results from the Mountain and West Coast time zones began to find their way onto the screens. Blue began to flip Red. Close House races in Virginia and Georgia went to the Dems. The lock on the House was secured for the Democrats. And then, it began to build.
The next morning, Trump held a bat-shit press conference where he announced the Midterms were "very close to a complete victory" for him, despite the House would soon be controlled by Democrats. Evidently, he had gone to bed when the TV pundits were suggesting that the GOP had staunched the Blue Wave. In fact, as time went on, Trump clung to the belief that the votes counted on Election Night were the only ones that mattered. Then he spun some inane BS about voter fraudsters changing disguises, and needing an ID to buy cereal. (As historian Douglas Brinkley has observed, Trump is a bull who brings along his own china shop.)
But Trump was wrong, as usual. In the days following Election Night, the Democratic vote continued to swell. Absentee ballots, provisional ballots and military ballots were added to the mix. Recounts were held. More and more House races went to Democrats. What seemed like a humble ripple early on Election Night has since swelled into a massive Blue Wave.
How big is Big? Pretty damn big.
Before the election, the House was 242 - 193, advantage GOP over Democrats. Today, the sides have switched: 235 Democratic seats to 200 Republicans. The Democrats picked up 42 seats, many more than predicted during Election Night and the most they've achieved since the days of Richard Nixon. Moreover, looking at all 435 House contests as a single nationwide popular vote, the Democrats amassed an 8% surplus over the GOP. That is significant in a democracy (although our Electoral College has something to say about whether we live in a democracy).
Here's a personal benchmark for this being Big: In my hometown of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, there hasn't been a Democratic Member of Congress representing it since... 1938. Yup, since the Great Depression. Since before World War 2. Since before Television. Well, say hello to Democratic Representative Sean Casten!
"OK, but what about the Senate?" The Republicans have added a couple of seats to their Senate total. Their advantage will be 53 - 47. But the Senate electoral map here was especially tough to contemplate anything better than a "hold" for Democratic best case scenario. The GOP had to defend 9 seats, all in Red States. They lost two of them. The Democrats had to defend 35 seats, including 15 in Red States that Trump won handily. They lost four of them. The Dems did well here, considering the radically uneven playing field.
So... what does it all mean?
It means that beginning January 3, 2019, Democrats will control the House of Representatives. They will chair all House committees. These committees have wide-ranging abilities to conduct oversight and investigations with subpoena power. The potential for unearthing what has been covered up/ignored since the 2016 election campaign is enormous.
The current hallmarks of the GOP Kakistocracy in DC are rank, grifting greed and amoral/unethical power politics applied to achieve long-standing ideological goals at the expense of the nation's health. These goals have been to kill the ACA/Obamacare, kill Roe v. Wade, kill watchdog regulations across the board, and kill government entitlement programs like Social Security. With a Democratic House, these GOP platform planks become very unlikely.
And despite Mueller-loathing Matthew Whitaker acting as a "temporary" Attorney General, the Special Counsel investigations will continue. There are nearly 36 unidentified sealed indictments on the DC Federal Court docket. There are other ones resting on the Eastern District of Virginia court docket, too. These could drop very soon; moreover, there will many new ones to compile.
And the House Judiciary, Intelligence and Foreign Relations Committees will now be acting as collaborative agents of Justice with the Special Counsel as the investigations continue. As I've suggested before, there will be a TON of shocking revelations as time goes on. Prison sentences. Careers will be ruined. Businesses will be destroyed. The GOP will be staggered. Some Democrats will be affected, too. It's not wrapping up anytime soon - the scope of these investigations is too enormous for a quick wrap-up. Spend a few minutes with this (pre-Helsinki Conference) extraordinary analysis of Trump as Russian Asset to better envision the real enormity of things:
http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/07/trump-putin-russia-collusion.html
Wowzers. Now use this info to understand the behavior of certain individuals over the last two years... Deny, Deflect, Push Back, Double Down. Repeat.
Anyhow, yes! Big Blue Wave!! If we survive the next six weeks, our country is poised to begin turning things around. Appreciation for quaint and neglected values like integrity and expertise will seep back into the system. We're not near the end. We're not at the beginning of the end. But we are past the end of the beginning.
To help celebrate the Blue Wave, check out this hilarious picture! When a couple posed recently for a Wedding Proposal photo, they were joined by some "significant otters." Sorry about that... Should be quite a wedding party!
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