Now the hard work begins, and there will be plenty of it. The landscape is much more difficult for President-Elect Obama and Vice President-Elect Biden than it was when this journey started 21 months ago. However, the Democrats have expanded their lead in Congress, and this should help get things done. Washington has become so divisive that gridlock has become the norm. Let's hope that some important things from Obama's to-do list can finally get done (and I hope alternative fuels and the environment is somewhere close to the top of that list).
Democrats have a golden, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a majority that will last quite a while. The Republicans have tried to win this election by pandering mostly to their white evangelical base, and it didn't work. This base will shrink as time goes on. If the Republicans want to be a viable party they need to abandon the divisiveness and negativity of this campaign, and quite possibly also abandon their voters on the far right. They need to stop worrying about cutting taxes for the wealthy at the expense of the middle class. And they need to stop trying to use social wedge issues to win elections.
John McCain chose a running mate that he thought would help get him elected; Barack Obama chose a running mate that would help him govern. I believe this was recognized by many voters and is one of the reasons why Obama and Biden won. They will make a great team.
Thanks to everyone who voted, regardless of who you voted for!
