The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good: 
There are a few bright spots in the election results.  The 19th legislative district retained Dean Takko and Brian Blake, Cowlitz County retained Prosecutor Sue Baur and replaced the outgoing republican Treasurer with Kathy Hanks.  Our neighbors in Oregon retained David Wu in Congress and elected John Kitzhaber as their governor.  The results are still not final in Washington's senate race, but it is looking like Patty Murray will be the winner in that race, as well.  It appears that democrats will retain their majority in the Washington State Legislature, albeit one that is much smaller.  The best news on the federal level is that the Senate majority also remains with the dems. 

The Bad:
The worst news for SW Washington is in the 3rd Congressional district, where Denny Heck lost to Jaime Herrera.  I actually kind of feel sorry for that girl--she is in WAY over her head and is about to learn some tough lessons.  In her victory speech, she made a point of saying that she will be there for all of the citizens of SW Washington, no matter their political leanings.  Well, Duh...that is your job.  But we will see how that pans out.  Even Cowlitz County, usually a democratic bastion, went with Herrera.  I'd like to figure out why.
A real surprise was the defeat of Commissioner Axel Swanson by newcomer James Misner.  Misner seemed to run on the "throw the bums out" logic, managing to stir up the rural voters as well as bringing in the republican base.  Cowlitz County is the biggest loser there--Axel's education and experience should have made his election a no-brainer. 

The Ugly:
The party of no has landed and the American people are their hostages.  The same obstructionist attitudes that have been getting in the way of the work of the people for the past two years haven't changed.  President Obama is either more optimistic than anyone I know or maybe a little delusional if he thinks there will be any compromise coming from the Republicans. The losers are the American people.  Here's what Rush Limbaugh said on his radio program yesterday.  "What is all this talk about compromise?  This talk about compromise started last night, and it's being given almost a full-throated throttle today.  It's coming from both sides.  Compromise?  Ladies and gentlemen, losers compromise.  Winners do not compromise.  The Democrats won nothing."

So, no compromising when the Dems are in power, and now, no compromising when they are in power?  Tiresome and a big waste of taxpayers dollars.