So the GOP takes the Senate. Republicans can’t get anything passed, but they can submit legislation and make Obama veto it, and that’s exactly what they should do. At this point, the idea is to stake out positions for 2016. (Instead of doing what they should do, of course, they will allow Obama to force them to become obsessed with amnesty. Yay GOP!)
As for governors, Brownback held on in Kansas, which few predicted, and the GOP won a governorship in Illinois. I said, in Illinois! Meanwhile, Tim Scott of South Carolina became the first black Senator to be elected in the South since Reconstruction. If you haven’t been paying attention, he’s a Republican. Yay GOP! (For real this time.)
Closer to home, most of the propositions I wanted to see defeated, were. Proposition 47, which I told you will be a disaster, was a glaring exception — and we also approved billions in water bonds, which is a bad idea but unsurprising in a drought. A proposition to force the state to set aside money for a rainy day passed, which makes the Big Spenders sad, and yours truly happy. Much of the results in this area could be predicted simply by following the money; if one side was far better funded, that side won. Yay Big Money.
The quality of the results in the races for judge were mixed. On the positive side, Tom Griego beat Andrew Stein, who referred to himself as “Gang Homicide Attorney” — probably hoping voters would think he prosecutes gang members who commit homicide, when he actually defends them. If that was the idea, it didn’t work. Meanwhile, an actual gang homicide prosecutor, my friend Dayan Mathai, lost his runoff election. I’d like to think that it was a contest fought on the merits, but I tend to think instead that voters just weren’t comfortable with Dayan’s unusual name. Yay voters!
All in all, a pretty good night. Time to go to work.
