"Tea Party" saves Obama/Dems from a 61/39 Senate

[The Vorlon]

Obama Says "thanks"

2010 Senates that GOP "should" have won

O'Donnell - (Connecticut Delaware - If Castle isn't primaried by a witch, he wins easy, was up 10 in all polls)
Mourdock (Indiana)
Akin (#legitimate Rape) Missouri
Berg - (North Dakota)
Angle (Nevada)
Raese (West Virginia)
Buck (Colorado)

You can argue a couple of these (maybe WV and Col) But you have to believe in 2010 (which had a higher GOP vote than 2014) that mainstream GOP candidates could have picked off a few more senate seats....

[Beet]

The GOP has a structural advantage in the Senate due to the large number of small, heavily GOP states in the Plains and West.

[The Vorlon]

The GOP has a structural advantage in the Senate due to the large number of small, heavily GOP states in the Plains and West.

Blame Jefferson & Madison for "The Great Compromise"

[Wisconsin+17]

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Thanks for the 2016 target for GOP president, 60/40 majorities in Senate and House. All in reach in 2016.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

O'Donnell was Delaware, though it's possible that Connecticut would have gone down in 2010 as well if the candidate had been somebody besides McMahon. I also think Montana would have gone down in 2012 if MO, IN, ND had gone republican also, due to a lack of rape comments to damage the whole republican brand.

So that ramps up the alternate universe GOP majority to 63-37.

[Mopsus]

Eh, Sarah Steelman was more the TEA Party candidate than Todd Akin was.

[Mr. Reactionary]

Eh, Sarah Steelman was more the TEA Party candidate than Todd Akin was.

[Mr. Reactionary]

I don't think we can extrapolate across 3 elections like this. If the Pubs had taken the Senate 2 (or 4) years ago thinks could be a lot different. Then maybe last night wouldn't have been a wave, and might have been more like 98.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

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Thanks for the 2016 target for GOP president, 60/40 majorities in Senate and House. All in reach in 2016.

Some of those races are 2012/2018 seats. There's no way the Republicans could have 60 Senators after 2016. Maybe 2018 if the Democrats continue down their same idiotic course.

[Stand With Israel. Crush Hamas]

Raese wasn't a Tea Party favorite. He was a WV perennial candidate in a year without much competition for the nomination.

I'm also not sure Chicken-lady or Casino Dude would have been able to knock off Reid. That was a race full of lightweights.

[GaussLaw]

If the GOP already had the majority going into this election, they wouldn't have done nearly as well.  Their determination not to **** it up again is what caused them to do so well.

[Associate Justice PiT]

If the GOP already had the majority going into this election, they wouldn't have done nearly as well.  Their determination not to **** it up again is what caused them to do so well.

     Besides, it's normal to lose a race or two that you shouldn't due to poor recruitment and likewise. This 61-39 figure supposes almost perfect play on the part of the GOP. Even without the Tea Party, this is very far from likely.

[Nichlemn]

I don't think Berg or Akin were "Tea Party" favourites.

It's interesting that the GOP appears not to have given away a single race to extremism this year.

[Bigby]

I don't think Berg or Akin were "Tea Party" favourites.

It's interesting that the GOP appears not to have given away a single race to extremism this year.

We learned not to submit to the crazies.

[Panda Express]

The GOP has a structural advantage in the Senate due to the large number of small, heavily GOP states in the Plains and West.

Barack Obama needs to forcefully merge all these big useless states together. Merge SD and ND  into Dakota. Merge ID and UT into Mormonia. Merge AL and MS into Hillbillyland. Merge KY and WV into Appalachia. Wyoming doesn't deserve the same representation as California.

[Maxwell]

Akin was from the Huckabee wing, so he was definitely not touted as a Tea Partier, and Berg was just an idiot.

[Mr. Reactionary]

The GOP has a structural advantage in the Senate due to the large number of small, heavily GOP states in the Plains and West.

Barack Obama needs to forcefully merge all these big useless states together. Merge SD and ND  into Dakota. Merge ID and UT into Mormonia. Merge AL and MS into Hillbillyland. Merge KY and WV into Appalachia. Wyoming doesn't deserve the same representation as California.

It be easier just to partition California.

[Panda Express]

The GOP has a structural advantage in the Senate due to the large number of small, heavily GOP states in the Plains and West.

Barack Obama needs to forcefully merge all these big useless states together. Merge SD and ND  into Dakota. Merge ID and UT into Mormonia. Merge AL and MS into Hillbillyland. Merge KY and WV into Appalachia. Wyoming doesn't deserve the same representation as California.

It be easier just to partition California.

Sure, cut California in half down the middle. I'd be ok with that too.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

I don't think Berg or Akin were "Tea Party" favourites.

It's interesting that the GOP appears not to have given away a single race to extremism this year.

We learned not to submit to the crazies.

No, it was just a year that even complete lunatics like Ernst won.

[Knives]

If Republicans had of won those, don't you think 2014 Climate would have been different?

[solarstorm]

I don't think Berg or Akin were "Tea Party" favourites.

It's interesting that the GOP appears not to have given away a single race to extremism this year.

Maybe not in the Senate, but Sam Brownback still holds the Governor's Mansion ...

[Recalcuate]

Obama Says "thanks"

2010 Senates that GOP "should" have won

O'Donnell - (Connecticut Delaware - If Castle isn't primaried by a witch, he wins easy, was up 10 in all polls)
Mourdock (Indiana)
Akin (#legitimate Rape) Missouri
Berg - (North Dakota)
Angle (Nevada)
Raese (West Virginia)
Buck (Colorado)

You can argue a couple of these (maybe WV and Col) But you have to believe in 2010 (which had a higher GOP vote than 2014) that mainstream GOP candidates could have picked off a few more senate seats....

The three seats where Republicans screwed up royally with gaffe-prone candidates were DE, IN and MO.

Manchin was a popular governor in WV and possibly the only D that could have maintained the seat.

I don't think it was as much as Angle was a terrible candidate (for NV) than Harry Reid is a master at ground game there. The result would have likely been the same no matter who he ran against. He's basically Houdini.

Berg wasn't the best candidate in ND. But she wasn't really a tea partier.

Colorado was just what it was at the end of the day.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Berg was as established as they come. Highly conservtive but an establishment type none the less.

[Southern Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Ann Coulter of all people pondered how nice it would have been to have Lugar, Steelman/Brunner, Castle and Simmons in the Senate right now.

[Slander and/or Libel]

I don't think Berg or Akin were "Tea Party" favourites.

It's interesting that the GOP appears not to have given away a single race to extremism this year.

We learned not to submit to the crazies.

The crazies learned to be better at hiding/lying about their crazy.