Posted by
Jordan on Monday, November 13, 2006 8:51:16 PM
Jordan Richardson
As I watched the election results Tuesday night, I quickly surmised we were in trouble. Republicans were falling to the Democrats like a shabby deck of cards. Every other report was that of a Democrat win. It pained me to see this happening so suddenly. Now don't get me wrong, I knew that the Republicans were in some hot water already, and that this would be a struggle to win, (Check the archives) but I never considered that the Democrats would actually pull it off. When the report came in that the Democrats had taken the House, I was rather upset. I knew they would never win the Senate but still.
At around 1:30 AM I finally went to sleep. The next morning I learned that the Democrats had taken a seat in Montana, and they needed Virginia, where our good friend George Allen was running. "Ha!" I thought. "They'll never beat him." I was woefully mistaken. George Allen later conceded to Jim Webb. I then caught the horrible disease of PEST, (Post-Election-Stress-Trauma) which lasted about a day. The Democrats did it: They took the House and Senate, not to mention the governorships. And they did it well. As writer Jonah Goldberg put it:
"The Democrats needed 15 seats to capture the House, and they passed that mark handily, like a running back carrying the ball through the end zone, into the bleachers, all the way to the concession stand, and bolting a hot dog for good measure. Then, twisting the knife and mangling this metaphor beyond all human decency, the Senate fell into the Dem column like one enormous hanging chad."
But now I am faced with a question: Why did we lose? Was it because of our conservative values? No, the last three elections proved the will of the people. Marriage was upheld in many states, and abortion was strongly opposed. Was it the Iraq war? Maybe, but not likely. As much as the media would like you to believe, it isn't the position of Republicans to bungle a war. Ah, but wait. Could it be that the squeamish position taken by the Republicans on immigration could be the answer? According to a Fox News poll, 57% of Americans feel that immigration was a "very serious problem." And according to a Washington Post poll, 50% of Americans feel that Democrats would do a better job handling illegal immigration.
It's certainly something to think about. I don't know that I would attribute all of the blame on the lack of spine on immigration, but I do believe it was a factor in this election. One of many.
Jordan Richardson is the founder of Conservative Mind.
www.conservativemind.org