This election is no mandate for Bush or the fundamentalist Republican ideologues. Nationally, the predicted voter turnout is 30%. Pundits all agree the "Republican mandate" is nothing more than a single senate heartbeat away from disappearing into the mists. McCain could go independent, and it's back to square one.

What is frightening though, is the fact that the fundamentalist Republicans are ruling this country with the support of only about 1/3 of eligible voters max. It seems they are able to hold onto control, no matter how low voter turnout goes, because of this incredibly dangerous "move to the center" by both Democrats and Republicans, which is what keeps people locked out of the process altogether. Republicans won Minnesota by co-opting the traditional Democratic agenda with the "compassionate conservative" facade that got Bush elected. The same way that the Clintonian Dems got elected by co-opting the Reagan agenda.

Standing in the middle stands for nothing but greed, graft, lust for power, and corruption of the system.

As I mentioned in another thread, Wall Street loves Washington gridlock, because it supports the corporate oligarchy agenda. That is what won it this time around. Those who are voting for the empire (and don't kid yourselves people, that is who is supporting the Republican fundamentalists--all those people we saw driving around after 9/11 with flags on their cars), on the national level at least, are voting for militarism. Voting for war. Voting for empire. Voting for nationalist machismo. Voting for "kicking ass" around the world.

Gloat all you want Claymore. Some of us aren't stupid enough to believe that Bush and the fundamentalist Republicans have overwhelming nationwide support, because we can actually do the math. Half of 30% of eligible voters is only 15%. Since WWII, it has been Republicans, not Democrats, running up huge deficits. They are the epitome of big government spending--if you don't believe that Claymore, just look and see what the bill will be to taxpayers for the military spending blowout that will come with the Homeland Security bill, the war against Iraq, the war on terrorism, and the oil it will take fuel it all.

Something that people who are voting Republican seem less able to do with every election, is see that their emperor has no clothes. Economically, they are now voting against their own self-interest, in order to vote for the right wing, racist, nationalist cause, currently masquerading itself as "patriotism". They still vote bread and butter issues in their local elections, but nationally, it is all about a nationalist militarist agenda. White men are the ones voting for these guys, not women, not people of color, and certainly not the poor and working classes, who are still the majority of people in this country.

This is the imperialist white man backlash, doing all it can to beat back the tides of progressive change. Nothing more, nothing less.