Day Two

In the second day of so many trying to make so much sense of the special election in Massachusetts there is only one analysis that makes sense.  There is no sense to be made of the result.

People were angry about joblessness, mortgage foreclosures, health care and Wall Street?  If that’s true then the voters really are dumb.  They voted for a guy who will join 40 other Republicans in the Senate who can only speak one word:  “no.”  “No” to a stimulus that reduces joblessness, “no” to helping those struggling with foreclosure, “no” to health care reform, and “no” to any meaningful reform of banking regulation.

Even worse, Massachusetts’s voters have endorsed one of the most shameful and destructive political strategies in American history.  They’ve enabled the Republicans who believe that by standing in opposition to any solutions-ANY solutions-they will achieve the political result they live for-their need to retake power.  Remembering the 2000 to 2008 time period, won’t that be a great experience to relive?  Massachusetts apparently thinks so.  They endorsed it Tuesday.

This is not to say I don’t appreciate a protest vote.  If that’s what Massachusetts was up to they could have voted for Joe Kennedy the Libertarian on the ballot.  With intent, they chose the Republican.

Let me be clear, Democrats have indeed earned our anger.  They allow their colleagues-Lieberman and Nelson the best examples-to use the process to work against common good and for their own individual, petty desires.  They wallow in this sickening scene for nearly a full year.  They cower in the shadow of Wall Street’s titans.

We could rise from the ashes by taking advantage of the opportunity Massachusetts gifted to Democrats.  Now that 60 Senators is past history let’s establish some party discipline.  Remove Lieberman’s and Nelson’s seniority.  Take Lieberman’s Homeland Security committee and install a new chair who is not a certifiable head case and actually gives a damn about America.

Most importantly, may our President find the voice he walked away from as he left the campaign trail and moved into the White House.  We need his spirit, intelligence, capacity to restore America.  If he stands we will stand with him.  Together we will do what we knew we could do in November 2008.

We’ll find out January 27^th when President Barack Obama delivers the State of the Union.