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1. “Republicans will consider this a referendum on Obama”

   Yeah, they get confused like that.
   It’s a referendum on Corzine…

   

   John Galt Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:18 pm

   It’s a referendum on Corzine…

   Nope. I think it’s a referendum on Obama. Then again, I’m not a republican.

   

   burqa Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:20 pm

   That referendum was held a year ago….

   

   John Galt Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:21 pm

   That referendum was held a year ago….

   Clever. How long have you had that ready?

   But serious. It certainly is a referendum on Obama.

   

   burqa Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:24 pm

   That one was held a year ago….you can look it up…

   

   piffle Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 1:33 am

   Weak. That was a referendum on George Bush. The referendum on Obama will be held in one year, but the preview starts now.

   Although John Corzine lost because he’s a terrible governor, the important thing is none of that magic Obamaglow could push him over the top, particularly considering all the polls showed the final push would be much narrower. And anyone watching Christie’s victory speech could tell he wasn’t exactly the most charismatic guy either… but still bested his Highness the most Magnificent up on the hill.

   

   John Galt Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:30 pm

   That one was held a year ago….you can look it up…

   It was mildly funny the first time; less so the second time.

   But keep it up.

   And it still is a referendum on Obama.

   

   burqa Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:38 pm

   You’re a year late for the referendum on Obama…

   Posted by burqa
   November 3rd, 2009 at 10:29 pm

2. That is true. In NJ, it is more about Corzine than Obama.

   Notice that it took a moderate to win and not a conservative?

   I’ll be interested in seeing the exit poll results, as I’d like to see how the votes turned out in each of the varying demographic areas.

   Heck, I’d like to see the # of Dems voting for Christies and those showing party loyalties. I think we’re going to see some interesting results

   Posted by BarryB
   November 3rd, 2009 at 10:58 pm

3. In Va., to win McDonnell had to run as a moderate.
   None of the right-wing pundits criticized him for doing so….

   BarryB Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 7:25 am

   Fascinating! :)

   So, it took a moderate to win the state of Virginia and a moderate to win NJ. Yet, the outright conservative Hoffman lost to Bill Owen.

   I think the Republicans need to take a better look at themselves; more so than the Democrats.

   Yes, the Democrats do need to take heed but not for the same reasons, though. For them, they need to rethink the ideas of using taxes to solve the problems. Better yet, they need to look at why Corzine lost. The man lost for good reasons.

   I don’t know about Virginia.

   Posted by burqa
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:07 pm

4. John, you John the trucker?

   

   John Galt Reply:
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:31 pm

   Me? No.

   Posted by burqa
   November 3rd, 2009 at 11:27 pm

5. A good day for Republicans. Obama won New Jersey by 17 points in 2008. I think it was more a referendum on Corzine but you cannot deny that it also is a reflection on how many independents view Obama.

   Corzine was one of the worst governors in America.

   

   OldLefty Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 8:18 am

   Here’s what I find very amusing:

   In 2001, commentators argued Dem wins in NJ and VA had little national significance.

   Mort Kondracke: “We have no way of knowing” how 2001 outcome would affect 2002 midterms. (Fox News’ Special Report with Brit Hume, 11/5/2001)

   Mara Liasson: “A handful of off-year elections can’t be used to predict” outcome of 2002 midterms..” (NPR’s Morning Edition, 11/7/2001)

   Dick Morris: “If you have a Republican president, people are going to vote Democrat, and if you have a Democrat president, they’re going to vote Republicans.”

   “[N]ow the Democrats are picking them all off because Bush is president. People want divided government, and that’s what you’re seeing, and that’s what you will see in ‘02, a Democratic trend, not because they don’t like Bush” (Fox News’ Hannity & Colmes, 11/6/2001)

   Michael Barone: “I don’t think that the issues and personalities” in Virginia and New Jersey races “are going to be congruent with very many” races in 2002 or 2004. [Special Report, 11/5/2001; via Nexis)

   Laura Ingraham: “Both sides are going to spin this,” but “to call this some kind of watershed moment against Republican views is nonsense.” (Hannity & Colmes, 11/7/2001)

   Then we have:

   The NY-23 election was an obsessive interest to everybody when it looked like an insurgent conservative might win. That fit the narrative. But when it turned out that in fact what happened was that Doug Hoffman, drove an easily winnable moderate Republican out of the race, then lost to a Democrat in a district that had been Republican for 140 years – suddenly the story seemed much less important

   Also the story of

   John Garamendi, a much more liberal Democrat won in California’s 10th.

   

   Daddio Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 8:25 am

   A divided government is much better for the country than one party dominating. It was true during the first six years of the Bush adm. and it is true now during the Obama adm.

   

   OldLefty Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 8:35 am

   “A divided government is much better for the country than one party dominating.”
   …………………….

   I agree, that is why the GOP should get on the ball and stop acting petulant children.

   

   Daddio Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 8:52 am

   I think you will be surprised come election day 2010.

   Obama and the Democrats who control Congress are completely misreading what they claim to be a mandate from the voters of America. They are pushing an agenda that the majority of Americans do not want.

   

   OldLefty Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 9:03 am

   “I think you will be surprised come election day 2010.”

   ……..

   We will see,
   Clinton lost the Congress, and is considered one of our best presidents.

   “They are pushing an agenda that the majority of Americans do not want.”

   The majority of Americans voted for an agenda that Obama has watered down for the sake of imaginary bipartisanship,.

   This is ACTUALLY classic Republican projection.

   In 2000, Americans voted for for no nation building, not the PNAC empire building.
   They voted for a uniter, not the divider, Bush immediately became.
   They voted “compassionate conservatism,” not torture and doubling the income of the richest 400 families.

   

   Daddio Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 9:12 am

   Americans didn’t vote for a 1.4 Trillion dollar deficit. Didn’t vote for a 800 Billion dollare yearly interest payment on the debt. Didn’t vote for a government takeover of the healthcare system. Didn’t vote for a cap and tax bill that will drive up the cost of energy for every American. “It will necessarily cause electric bill to skyrocket.” Obama on his proposed cap and trade (tax) bill. Didn’t vote to still allow lobbyist in his administration. Didn’t vote for Obama so he could shutout the opposition party when it came to writing bills. Didn’t vote for a president who didn’t know when to stop campaigning. Didn’t vote for a president who couldn’t make a decision on whether or not to send additional troops to Afghanistan. And on and on.

   The American people didn’t vote for any of the above but that is what we are getting.

   

   Lee Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 9:27 am

   “The American people didn’t vote for any of the above but that is what we are getting.”

   Aside from the fact that the above accusations are the usual distortions originated by Right-wing politicians, the fact is that in a manner of speaking, I’m afraid that ‘yes we/they did’. Unfortunately for you, ‘The American people’ in reality is more than just Conservatives and Liberarians.

   I’m very happy with Pres. Obama so far, I’m just very disappointed with congress and angry at the total and utter lack of cooperation from Republicans, playing politics rather than doing whats best for the country at a very critical juncture in our nations history.

   jasperjava Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 9:45 am

   Americans didn’t vote for a 1.4 Trillion dollar deficit. Didn’t vote for a 800 Billion dollare yearly interest payment on the debt.

   We voted for someone to fix the economy. Absent business investment and consumer demand, the government had to step in to stimulate spending. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we did not sink into a full-blown Great Depression, and we can thank President Obama for that.

   As for the debt, that’s pretty rich coming from a George Dubya supporter. The 1.4 Trillion dollar deficit is AT MOST equal to the cost of the unnecessary Iraq War. Plus, the stimulus spending actually helps create jobs and infrastructure, instead of death and destruction. It’s a plus-plus.

   Didn’t vote for a government takeover of the healthcare system.

   Obviously you haven’t been paying attention, or you’re getting your cues from geniuses like Sarah Palin.

   Didn’t vote for a cap and tax bill that will drive up the cost of energy for every American. “It will necessarily cause electric bill to skyrocket.” Obama on his proposed cap and trade (tax) bill.

   We voted for action on climate change. You think we can accomplish these goals without a little sacrifice?

   Didn’t vote for Obama so he could shutout the opposition party when it came to writing bills.

   That’s RICH. President Obama has bent over backwards to reach out to Republicans and compromise, and yet gets repeatedly slapped in the face by the Party of “NO”. Like the good Christian he is, he instantly forgives and turns the other cheek.

   Didn’t vote for a president who couldn’t make a decision on whether or not to send additional troops to Afghanistan.

   Thank God that President Obama is careful and methodical with the lives of the troops, instead of going off half-cocked with gut feelings based on phony intelligence like his predecessor did.

   

   TDro319 Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 2:38 pm

   “Americans didn’t vote for a 1.4 Trillion dollar deficit.”

   Don’t forget this deficit now includes the two useless wars that were started in 2001.

   

   burqa Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 3:53 pm

   “Obama and the Democrats who control Congress are completely misreading what they claim to be a mandate from the voters of America. They are pushing an agenda that the majority of Americans do not want.”

   Tell us, Daddio, what the American people voted for when they swept Obama to victory?
   The reason the Democratic Party took control of Congress and the executive branch is because the American people voted overall to vote for their overall program.
   That means national health care of some sort and giving benefits to the poor and middle class instead of the wealthy.
   It means getting out of Iraq, ending torture and getting out of ruinous supply-side economics which always produces recessions, high unemployment and record-sized deficits.

   

   burqa Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 3:57 pm

   “Americans didn’t vote for a 1.4 Trillion dollar deficit.”

   That’s right, jasperjava.
   The deficit you refer to is the difference between the budget and income of the federal government.
   Guess whose name is on the bottom of that budget?
   Whyyyyyy, it’s George W. Bush’s, that’s who!
   And the American people rejected the Republican candidate for president, didn’t they?

   Posted by Daddio
   November 4th, 2009 at 8:08 am

6. Daddio (Willy)…If you are only going to quote what Rush Limbaugh says, then your thinking process and reasoning is muted and you have no chance, in a debate with the above posters.

   luv2lift48 Reply:
   November 4th, 2009 at 3:45 pm

   LOL..it’s true…they listen to Rush limpball, and you can almost see them sitting there with their notepads and muttering the “cool phrases”,committing them to memory then they run across the room to the computer and parrot the show in here..Damn funny.

   But I digress. winning an office in NJ is analogous to being made the manager of Dennys. No big deal.

   Posted by Debby
   November 4th, 2009 at 10:21 am