The Big Blue Wave

WASHINGTON – Who would have thunk it? A Big Blue wave finally came crashing over Capitol Hill November 8th with the Democrats sweeping into the House with by margin of at least 30 seats and capturing the Senate with pick-ups in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Missouri, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Montana (?)! As predicted, many Democratic pick-ups in both houses came from surprisingly conservative candidates. Slate's calling 'em them the "Lou Dobbs Democrats;" CNN's John King brands them "Conservatives;" and The New York Times' Carl Hulse calls the Dems' 110th Freshman class a "challenge". Even Rush Limbaugh is citing crew-cutted Democratic icon, Senator-elect Jon Tester (D-MT) as an exemplar of conservatism's triumphal march.

At The Brandwagon, we've got a different take. Americans got tired of the war, the rancor of partisan puffery, the exportation of jobs to faraway shores, and the ugliness of $2 billion in 15-second smear spots.

The new faces of the Democratic Party bring something to both the Democratic brand – and Washington itself – dignity. Certainly, no one can accuse incoming senators Tester, McCaskill, Casey, Webb, or Brown as "liberal." Neither can we label incoming representatives Shuler, Hill, or Ellsworth as overly "progressive." But, we believe they bring much more to Washington than their nominally-conservative roots. They bring something far more important – a sense of calm, reserve, and good old-fashioned middle-American humanity, an element sorely lacking from both political brands for longer than we care to remember.