Fortunately, Republicans did not win the Senate

Thank God it’s finally over. That was my first thought on Wednesday morning when I realized that the mid-term elections were done. However, my relief quickly turned to trepidation as I realized that the 2012 elections were probably going to begin in earnest next week.

Though Republicans were ecstatic about winning back control of the House of Representatives, many were left dumbfounded by the fact that Democrats kept control of the Senate. I came to the conclusion that Harry Reid would retain his seat the minute I saw Ed Schultz reporting for MSNBC from the Reid camp.

However, I don’t think the news is as bad as those on the right think it is. As a matter of fact, the worst thing that could have happened to Republicans was to win the Senate along with the House. Think about it... In any political environment, you need to have a scapegoat — someone to use as a poster child for the wrongs of the other party. Barack Obama and his handlers are much too PR savvy to let the president take any of the fall.

As far as the Republicans go, they get to keep Reid as their scapegoat while closing the power gap to a five-vote margin. Reid, Pelosi and Obama have, in the public’s eye, become the political trinity of all that is wrong with government. Can you ever recall a political time when the Senate Majority Leader and the Speaker of the House received so much media attention for such a prolonged period of time?

Let’s face it, it’s going to be an uphill battle to pull this great country of ours out of its economic woes, bring the unemployment rate to a palatable level and prove to the rest of the world that we are still a great country.

Obama has put us on a path of economic destruction evidenced by his earmark-laden stimulus package, generous bailouts that benefited his union lackeys, and oppressive regulatory policies for the financial industry, to just name a few. And of course, where are the jobs? It seems that everything he puts his finger on turns to unemployment.

The Republican-controlled House will be hamstrung to put our country on the road to recovery since the president will still continue to set the nation’s agenda. Fear not, you card-carrying right-wingers. The one thing that you are not hearing from the main stream media is that Republicans are now sitting in 30 governors’ mansions and picked up 19 state legislatures! Having the Senate majority wouldn’t make a difference. The Republicans need the White House in 2012 in order to “right the wrongs” of this administration. Until then, we can handle this from a local level.

If the Republicans controlled the Senate, then the president, whose policies will continue to bankrupt the nation over the next two years, would be able to blame conservatives for the continual decline of our economy. He would be able to pin it on the Republicans and say, “I tried... but the Republicans dug their heels in the ground every step of the way.” The right wing would be his scapegoat. Now, in 2012, the president will have only himself and his policies to blame.

And again, the right gets to keep Reid. His face and name will become even more closely tied to Obama and his policies as the three-headed beast has now become two. We will remember and keep those responsible accountable.

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Mike Russell contributed to this article

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Michael Weinstein is co-host of the “The Mike & Winey Show” which can be heard on the web at www.mikeandwiney.com.