The Day After Massachusetts

I didn't get any emails from the President today. I did hear from Mitch Stewart, the director of Organizing for America, who basically encouraged me to continue the good fight, and thanked me for being a part of it, the fight for change. As are many people, I'm still digesting the results, the commentary, and what it all means for us.

On the one hand, some contend that the vote means Americans don't want health care reform. Which we weren't really going to get anyway -- we were likely looking at health insurance reform, which is a different animal all together.

There are those that say the vote was an Obama referendum, and clearly signals that his policies are wrong for the country, we're headed in the wrong direction, and that coupled with the Republicans taking the governorships in New Jersey and Virginia, that the Dems are in big trouble in the mid-term elections.

And of course there are those who say that this is really a vote against business as usual in Washington, that people are sick and tired of not being listened to and are not going to take it any more. John McCain referred to 'unsavory sausage-making', and odd description of the legislative process.

For a unique perspective, there's this take on things from Brian McGrory of the Boston Globe. I've never read any post-election column quite like it.

So which of these is correct? Likely a little bit of all of them. People are angry; they're scared about the economy; they're frustrated with nothing being accomplished in Washington, and with the general tone of what passes for debate; folks are growing tired of handouts and bailouts and wars and everything else, and I think the voting booth is one way to ensure that someone - anyone - listens. And while the party in power always loses ground in the midterm elections, this could be a sign that the hits will be harder come November than might have been imagined a year ago.

My question though, is this. All these years, were the folks in Massachusetts really that liberal? Or were they really simply satisfied with the status quo, a guy named Ted Kennedy?