Quote:
Originally Posted by whell
Now, it will be up to those newly elected to respond to their "mandate" and put forward an agenda that is aligned with what the voters want. If the occupant of the executive branch continues to defy the will of the electorate, the electorate may choose to "finish the job" in 2012.
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I agree generally with your first 2 paragraphs, but you're way off the mark here. Charlie Cook, the most highly regarded election pollster, said today that if tomorrow's results look like they're looking now (GOP wins the House by a good margin, doesn't take back Senate), the GOP will be making a grave error to perceive this as a mandate.
He noted several things: first, the Republicans in Congress are held in the greatest disfavor of anybody in politics at the moment. The GOP won't be "winning" this election, the Dem's will be losing a vote of confidence by not addressing the economy first in favor of health care and cap and trade (in voters' eyes). He said the GOP will go down in flames very rapidly if they read tomorrow's results as a mandate, rather than just another vote for "change."