We Aren’t Voting for Republicans

November 1st, 2010

Scott Rasmussen:

But none of this means that Republicans are winning. The reality is that voters in 2010 are doing the same thing they did in 2006 and 2008: They are voting against the party in power.

This is the continuation of a trend that began nearly 20 years ago. In 1992, Bill Clinton was elected president and his party had control of Congress. Before he left office, his party lost control. Then, in 2000, George W. Bush came to power, and his party controlled Congress. But like Mr. Clinton before him, Mr. Bush saw his party lose control.

That’s never happened before in back-to-back administrations. The Obama administration appears poised to make it three in a row. This reflects a fundamental rejection of both political parties.

That’s exactly right. Tomorrow, Democrats will be thrown out of the House of Representatives, a few senators will follow them, and Republicans will replace them. We aren’t voting for Republicans. We are voting against corruption, incompetence, hyper-partisanship, and a refusal to address to our country’s biggest issues.

Republicans need to remember this: we are not voting for them. We do not agree fully with their agenda. This is not a mandate. This is not the green-light to do whatever they want. This is a message to both parties: act responsibly and address our nation’s issues. If you don’t, we’ll throw you out, too.

Republicans will not take control of the government tomorrow; it looks like they will control the House and reduce the Democratic senate majority. They could use this as an excuse to act as the foil to the Democrats, preventing the Democrats from doing what they want, rather than as a force for good government. That isn’t acceptable.

Continuing to oppose bad policies pushed by President Obama or Democrats in the Senate will be something they have to do, but it will not be sufficient. They must put forward serious, ambitious proposals to address our current economic problems and our long-term budget. This means addressing Social Security, Medicare, healthcare reform and defense spending.

Trying to marginalize Democrats in the House will also not be acceptable. Rhetoric like “they’ll have to sit in the back seat,” as our president has taken to, should be forcefully resisted.

I will, as we all should, criticize them if they don’t. They will deserve it.