Well, for now we are stuck with this winner take all system that sucks. It has always been that the winner can and often does, ignore the losing faction, regardless of how thin the margin is. I expect that to be no different this year.

And it can certainly be argued that Bush and the Republican party have the biggest mandate to govern in a couple of decades. The Democratic party losses are stunning. I still can't quite wrap my head around the fact that Daschle lost.

But hey, this victory by the Republicans certainly should now concentrate the minds and hearts of the progressive movement in this country, eh? I am happy that the results were much more decisive than I thought they would be. It is a clear victory for the Republicans, there is no arguing that. Fair game to them, they waged a hell of an effective campaign, and won this thing fair and square.