The 2008 Wins Weren't What The Democrats Thought They Were

If you listened to almost any Democrat over the last year, you would have heard an echo in their words that said America voted for "change" and that was the mandate that they were handed. However, today's polling is really telling us that Americans were primarily upset about the economy under Bush and the Republicans. They were not wishing for a massive accumulation of debt and the promotion of a huge left-wing social agenda.

In retrospect, I think almost any Democrat could have won against any Republican in 2008. That's because the conditions on the ground -- from the collapse of the housing bubble to the economic meltdown of a recession -- sealed the fate of the Republicans and left the door wide open for the Democrats to win control of both Houses of Congress.

What the Democrats sensed as a "mandate" was actually a rebellion. America wasn't voting for the Democrats in 2008. They were voting against the Republicans. That subtle nuance is why the Democrats are so wrong in what they are doing today. That is why Obama is seeing the worst ever December polling numbers of any President in history. Now, we are seeing a Democratic party that may lose heavily in this Fall's mid-term election because they don't truly understand why they now have control; and, because of this, they have clearly overstepped their boundaries.

There are those on the left -- including the national media -- that seem to believe that Democrats will simply win or lose this Fall's election on the basis of the jobs picture. I don't think so. I think that there are a number of elements that will result in big losses for them in November; and, the blame for those losses must be shouldered by the bad management at the top by Obama and the current Democratic majority in Congress.

Surely, the economy will be a big issue. But, the Democrats and Obama actually lost the "blame Bush" excuse when they passed the massive Stimulus Plan and, then, America found out that it didn't work. So, in essence, they became owners of this economy and, I think, short of anything less than 8 percent unemployment in the Fall, they will be held accountable.

I think, too, that America is disappointed in the "bait and switch" tactics that they have been getting from Obama. He preached fiscal control and yet blew that out of the water in January with the Stimulus Package and the final 2009 Omnibus bill. There was supposed to be transparency; but, the public saw none. And in complete contrast to reaching across the aisle, he has shut out the Republicans completely.

Lastly, Obama's national security positions are a joke. He has embarked on prosecuting CIA personnel for enhanced interrogation techniques and, by doing so, has probably emasculated that critical agency. He's decided to close Gitmo as if this facility is the only reason that radical Islamic terrorism is growing. He will prosecute KSM and other terrorists as if they were a bunch of ordinary criminals. He and his Administration have stopped referring to the "war on terror" and are determined to Mirandize terrorists as if they robbed a liquor store. That very thing happened when they took the Christmas Day bomber into custody. Now, he's lawyered up and not talking. Worse yet, we will be offering him "plea bargain" deals like less time in jail if he coughs up any credible information about how the plot was developed; who his contacts were; and where he received the bomb materials and training.

I think the latest attempted bombing incident -- more than anything -- has shown how weak a leader Obama is. For that reason, the Democrats will probably lose more than people think in the Fall elections.