Election 2010

About a week before Tuesday's election I was polled over the phone about my preferences of some of the statewide candidates. One question asked was "Do you consider yourself Republican, Democrat or Independent?" I told the interviewer of the three, I would have to say Republican but I prefer to call myself conservative. Her response was interesting. She said she had a remarkable number of others respond the same way.

Exit polls from Tuesday's election show a growing number of persons identifying themselves as conservative. 41 % of the voters call themselves conservative, 39% moderate and 20% liberal

These numbers reflect what pollsters like Gallup & Rasmussen have been finding. More Americans now identify themselves as conservative than at anytime in modern history.

This surely was played out in the elections Tuesday. It appears the GOP picked up over 60 seats (61 at last count)in the House of Representatives thus becoming the majority and picked up 6 seats in the Senate decreasing the Democrats advantage to 53 -47. These were truly huge in scope. Many republicans lament that more seats could have been taken in the Senate but a 6 seat gain is double what would have been expected in a normal election. More importantly for Republicans was the number of Governors and statehouses that swung to their side particularly in key battleground states like Ohio and Pennsylvania. The U.S. map appears to have returned to what it looked like prior to 2006. Alot of blue in the northeast and along the west coast but Red across the heartland.

So, Why did this happen? Clearly this has to be a repudiation of the policies being pushed forward by President Obama and what has been for 4 years a left of center congress. The majority of Americans have been against Obamacare, the stimulus package and the cap and trade energy policies which were shoved forward in spite of the public disenchantment. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid ridiculed the public time and again for the public opposition. Democrats continually showed how out of touch our elected officials were with their constituents. In spite of what he says, Obama spoke to americans over and over trying to sell his health care plan and americans rejected it. Yet, Pelosi, Reid and the President did everything they could to garner votes for the legislation. The back room deals to force this legislation upon us angered americans across the country. The arrogance of the White House and Congress was appalling.
The United States has shown to be a center-right country and President Obama and Congress have governed far left of center. The past two years he has appeared to move the United States closer to the European Socialist model which has nearly caused the economic collapse of Europe. The Europeans are discovering the error of their ways and are pulling back from their policies of the past 20 years while Obama has wanted to steer us toward their failed agenda. Tuesday Americans rejected this over reliance on government to solve our problems.
Conservatives believe more power should be invested in the individual, not in government. Free markets need to be allowed to do what they do in order to create growth and job creation. Both sorely needed in the current economic climate.
Obama's incompetence in the face of Crisis hasn't helped his standing with the american people. This was best illustrated during the Oil disaster in the Gulf. Time and again, he mishandled the situation. Obama hasn't had the luxury of being a governor or holding any other administrative position for that matter and it clearly was evident.
How will Obama govern during the next two years? We shall see. Will he be like President Clinton, when during his first mid-term suffered similar defeats, and moderated his policies and worked with the more conservative congress to "End welfare as we know it" and state "The era of big government is over"or will he try to find more nefarious ways to further his more liberal agenda using executive orders? Time will tell.