For the Republicans, Brown's election in one of the bluest of blue states was a near miracle. The last Republican Senator from Massachusetts was over 30 years ago. While this was a great victory, it is only one battle. In this case, the Republicans have a chance to plug the big-government health care hole...but it is just a plug. The Democrats still have a commanding majority in both houses of the Congress and hold the White House. So while this was a victory, it was only one small battle in the political war for control and the future of the country. So Republicans can celebrate...but not for too long, there is much yet to be done.
For the Democrats, the Brown win is quite problematic. In an election that was supposed to be a walk-away sleeper, they were confronted with an electorate who were energized against their candidate and their policies. They are left with a hole in their dyke that began with the Republican wins in the governor races of Virginia and New Jersey and have continued to grow with the Brown win. Now the Democrats are desperately trying to plug the hole by downplaying the significance of the wins. They are trying to say that the anger is unfocused and that it really stems from dissatisfaction with incumbents and the way things have been done for the last eight years.
But will it be enough to keep the dyke from bursting in the mid-term elections in November? Current polling shows that incumbent Democrats are in trouble all across the country. President Obama's approval numbers are hovering under 50% after only a year in office and the Democrat controlled Congress is showing approval numbers of only 26%.
So which side will be the most effective in stemming the tide, of holding back the waters? That remains to be seen. The Republicans need to begin showing some real leadership. Their job is not complete. The Democrats only hope may be to moderate their stances, like President Clinton did after his first mid-term election cycle. Either way, the real story is that the American people have woken from their long slumber. They are seeing that how The People's business is conducted really does matter. That may be the biggest lesson...The will of The People cannot be dammed up indefinitely.
