Now we can stop the bleeding

The Democrats have retaken the House and still have a shot at the Senate. What does it mean? It means we can stop the bleeding but reconstructive surgery will have to wait for a couple of years. As everyone else has said this election was all about George W. Bush. He was not on the ballot so his sycophants in the Republican congress had to take the hit. Don't expect anything radical from Speaker Nancy Pelosi, just a lot of long overdue congressional oversight. She may be a "lefty" but she is also one shrewed politician and won't overplay her hand. The real problem for Bush may not be the Democrats but the Republicans who will no longer see him as a power or a threat. Expect to see the Republicans spend the next two years running even faster from the Bush administration. Now I know how I think George W. Bush should respond but I suspect that he will continue to act like a spoiled adolescent and refuse to change course or admit mistakes. Nothing will change in Iraq anytime soon.

Here in my home state of Oregon things also went well. Draconian funding limits measures, funded by out of state interests, both failed as did a anti-abortion parental notification bill. The Democrats also took control of the Oregon House for the first time in many years. And of course Democratic Governor, Ted Kulungoski won a significant victory.