Something to remember about 1993 and the GOP take over in 1994

[AllentownJake]

The US wasn't as polarized by political party geographically. If you look at the Senate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senators_by_seniority_(1993,1994)

Look at all the Republicans in the northeast and mid-atlantic and look at all the democrats in the south.

The way the Republicans took power was by keeping their moderates in the northeast and by getting conservatives to win in the south. Currently there is no moderate republican party anywhere in this country with maybe the exception of Maine.

I can speak for PA as it is my state and I know the GOP here, Arlen Specter is a dinosaur of a bygone era in PA. I'm assuming that accross the country the party has taken a very sharp right wing shift. The republicans can't re-run 1993 because they don't have the safe north east incumbents they had in 1993.

[elleng]

1. AND they don't have Bill Clinton to kick around anymore.

.

[Clio the Leo]

2. thank you

I always welcome anything that will calm my sometimes unnecessary fears.

[AllentownJake]

3. The only way they win in the north east is with moderates

They have driven the moderates out of the party calling them RINOs. Their attacks on Specter, Snowe, and Collins have done nothing to endear them in the north east.

The republican party made a deal with the devil when they got into bed with the likes of Falwell and Robertson. Most people were tolerant of them till Bush and never really knew what they were about. The evangelicals were paid some lip service but they were the uncle in the attic. Under Bush they let the uncle out. The opinion wasn't overtly negative or positive. They were so happy to have "one of their own" in the White House. In order to win a Republican Primary today you need to pander to the nut jobs. People now hate the nut jobs in the northeast which makes it very hard to beat a democratic candidate unless the candidate is an absolute crook.

They had a chance to re-invent themselves however it appears their solution is to cling even harder to the very things that got them booted from office in the first place.

[Jennicut]

4. As a New Englander, the Rethugs are done in the Northeast. Done.

No one here wants them around or believes them at all anymore. Some people still like Snowe and Collins as they are still moderate enough and willing to work with Obama. But the days of any liberal Rethugs winning in New England is over. There are no more Lincoln Chaffes, the party drove them out with its over reliance on neo con ideas. What I like about Obama is that he is trying to lead the Dems by example, not by arm twisting. There are liberal Rethug governors still here like in Rhode Island and CT but they work very well with their Dem controlled legislatures.

[ccharles000]

5. good point

[wyldwolf]

6. there were lots of Democratic retirements in '94 plus southern gerrmandering to favor the GOP

Couple that with the first mass mobilization of the Christian right, low public confidence in Congress, an anti-incumbency wave, a bi-partisan financial scandal spun as a Democratic one, and a president who, quite frankly, tackled some very liberal issues (gays in military, gun control, health care) and you had the perfect recipe for disaster.

Volumes have been written on '94. Lots of things came together to favor the GOP.

[ejpoeta]

7. we are also in a different situation then we were in 93.

I don't think there is a person who hasn't been touched by this economic disaster. Or at least knows someone who has. We are in quite a pickle in this country, and I think people aren't going to put up with the republican bs right now. They want something DONE.... NOW!