Change is coming

The dust has almost settled and as it does, the Democrats have control of the House of Representatives, and will, in a few hours, reveal that the Democrats also won the Senate. As a Democrat -- and a liberal one at that -- there is great reason to celebrate. Change is coming.

Other pundits (and heck, I'd like to think I'm just as qualified at analysis as they are) will tell us that the reasons Dems won is because it was because they ran to the center, putting up a slate of conservative and moderate candidates, because it was a referendum on George Bush and Iraq, that the Democrats didn't "win," the Republicans lost -- and lost because voters weren't smart enough to understand the issues, or only voted on their pet issues (stem cell research).

Maybe it's because the Democrats put together a smart playbook, that allowed them to present the strength of party -- it's diversity, it's progressiveness -- showcased against the status quo. Republicans like to cast Democrats as raving lunatics who don't have family values, aren't religious ("Godless," if you believe Ann Coulter-geist), are weak on defense, pander to terrorists, and worse. This election proved them wrong. Democrats come in all colors, are liberal, moderate, conservative, and all points in between. Some of us are religious and some of us not so much. We serve in the military, we serve in the Peace Corps. We are in business, large and small, we are in labor unions. We are your neighbors.

Democrats did well in this election because they were able to make their vision of change clear and it resonated with voters.