Realignment!!!!!!

12 days out and things are looking great, Obama has substantial breathing room and it looks like most of the swing states will be blue this time, Great news, Moreover there are about net 30 GOP House Seats in play and we have a decent shot at a filibuster-proof senate,

And now the circular firing squad on the right seems to be growing daily,

This is all awesome news, Beyond awesome,


But folks it is not enough to spank the GOP, it is not en ought to win or even vanquish the enemy, Ultimately this is about governing and it seems to me that Obama faces a tough choice, Govern as a leftist or as a centrist. There is nothing preventing him from pushing a lefty agenda but I think that is unwise. He could entirely shut the GOP out and push through the red meat must of DU would very clearly ratify, But in so doing he only sets himself up for the same narrative that plays out every four years in a narrowly divided country,

Remember when we were all up in arms about what Obama said about Reagan changing the trajectory or America? Well, he was right. He was not endorsing policy, he was talking about governing coalitions.

Obama is uniquely positioned as DEM to realign the electorate for a generation if he works with Republicans and invites them to the table. That certainly was what he spoke about in the Audacity of Hope. I recognize the irritation some will express with the mere thought, but consider te possibility.

The GOP is gong to be licking its wounds for a year and then is going to have to figure out who they are and that is going to be a major battle, Sarah Palin the the presumptive nominee of base facing off against huckabee and Romney,

By moving adeptly, Obama can severely undercut Romney's support among moderate republicans leaving the GOP holding nothing but a right wing agenda shaped by the Palin wing of the party.

That is what we want going into 2012...the GOP more narrow-minded and less appealing to swing voters and moderate republicans, Played right Obama could hold sway over these voters for a generation to come.

A permanent majority can only be created in the middle of the road. Economic policy and fiscal restraint are going to be important to a post-Iraq, post-Katrina, Post-credit crunch world. Broadening the coalition by requiring sacrifice and limited government is going to be the smart politics of the next four years.

That does not mean we give up on universal health care, but it does mean the argument needs to be cast in language that is palatable to moderate republicans.... Because if there is a sense that we are forcing things down the throat of the American people we are going to be right back where we have been on this issue for the last two decades.

If he governs like he runs he should be able to maintain a high level of support for the policies he's promoted during the campaign. Given that he appears to be a genuine moderate I don't expect that he will try to lurch severely leftward at the risk of alienating his more moderate/conservative supporters but his policies and proposals will undoubtedly reflect a MUCH more progressive approach than has been the case during the past 8 years to be sure.

A lot of this is certainly messaging, but the opportunity is certainly there to begin a run of White House wins mot uinlike what the GOP has seen in winning 7 out of the last 10 elections.

The Huckster's a much more likely front-runner in '12. Palin will be damaged by association with a losing ticket (Franklin Roosevelt is the only losing VP candidate in American political history to come back and win his party's nomination and the presidency), and she's not faring well NOW given the scrutiny of the national media. The delusional fuckwits in the GOP base may want her, but the front-runner for the GOP nomination next cycle is NOT going to be Palin.

SHe is not the darling of the GOP but she is the darling ot the fundies. They like Hucabee ok but he has been sucessfully tagged with a tac legacy and ROmney is welll he's part of a "cult"

The rethuglicans are kicking the middle of the road moderates out of their shrinking little tent.

Right into the arms of President Obama and the new majority party, the Democrats. :)

I pray the thug party returns to its rightful place as the permanent minority.