Unintended Consequences

I wrote a few days ago about how a giant has been awaken. One of the unintended consequences of the Republicans winning Tuesday is that they did something liberals couldn't do by themselves, oust conservative Democrats. I have not been too upset about the major losses by the Democrats, it has given us an opportunity to start over in the House. Democrats still have a slim lead in the Senate and the Presidency, so Republicans will have a tough time trying to reverse anything major.

The conservative Blue Dog Caucus has been cut in half and its leaders out of office. I'd be surprised if there are any Democrats that will miss uninspiring politicians like Gene Taylor, Lincoln Davis, Walt Minnick, Chris Carney, Jim Marshall, Chet Edwards, and a few others? Of course despite losing Hall, Grayson, and Hare, the Progressive Caucus has remained in tact and looks to yield more power in the minority. A lot of anti-Choice Democrats lost as well and the Democratic Party will become more dedicated to preserving a woman's right to choose as a result. Looking back at all the loses Democrats took, I think it's fair to say that they didn't really have a majority to begin with, so the losses weren't that devastating. So the consequence of a Republican victory is a more liberal Democratic Party.