Why McCain’s Democratic Congress/Democratic President Argument is Wrong

One of John McCain’s latest arguments is that the country will be stuck with both a Democratic Congress and  Democratic President.  His logic is that, in doing so, this country will veer well to the left of the general populous.  Look, quite frankly, I can’t argue with that view.  I tend to be one of those well to the left of center and wouldn’t mind seeing the country go in that direction.  But, most of this country is center, and possibly slightly right of center.  McCain’s argument makes sense and should be dangerous to the Obama campaign to ignore.

However, I would argue that this is not the time to have a split Congress and Executive Branch.  This occurred to me as I was playing the roll of ‘typical’ Democrat and wondering what would happen if Obama lost.  The fallback is to take solace in the fact that the Democrats could still control the legistlative agenda, despite whatever fantasy land Sarah Palin lives in.  But here’s the thing.  Nothing would get done.  Even if Obama was to lose the election, the Democrats are going to pick-up a lot of seats in Congress.  They may even pick-up 60 votes needed for a super majority in the Senate.  They are not going to be in a mood to negotiate with McCain.  First, he is a Republican. Second, they will not forgive the slash and burn campaign.  Third, the bitterness from an Obama loss would sting too much to be bi-partisan.  The GOP is going to be at such a disadvantage in Congress, they will not be able to twist the Democrat’s hands.  Some might argue that the Democrats might play ball to protect themselves for 2010.   However, I doubt it.  I think after eight years of George W. Bush they are going to play hardball and force McCain to come to their position.

This is why an Obama win is critical.  This country is dealing was some significant issues right now, primarily on the economy.   This is not a time where Washington gridlock can exist.  I understand how hard a pill this is to swallow for a Conservative.  I can imagine how hard it would me to accept this position if the roles were reversed.  But Washington needs action, needs to be dynamic in the very quickly changing World financial picture.  Look, even if you don’t agree 100% with the Democrats – this country needs real action in the short term.  Right now, everyone tends to be thinking a little more to the left than they normally would – increased regulation, more bailout for Wall Street and Main Street.  The focus would be strongly on the economy and would be the pressing/overriding  issue during the first year of an Obama administration.  By the second year, all of the House would be up for re-election and 1/3 of the Senate would again be up for election.  That would continue to force the Democratic Congress to govern from the center, rather than the left.  If I was a intelligent Conservative, I’d realize if the Democrats push too much to the left, 2010 would be a referendum on that policy and the GOP could make big inroads back into the Legislature.

This country cannot take anymore gridlock.  The economy is issue #1, everyone agrees.  So the question is, how can you most effectively fix that economy?  By ensuring no gridlock, at least we’d have a fair chance at doing the right thing to get the economy fixed.  Sure, most Republicans will say this is a ploy to implement a Democratic agenda.  They could be right, but I can guarantee that a Republican President and a strong Democratic-leaning Congress will simply make the problems worse.  Two years is a not a lot of time.  If it doesn’t work, then vote the bums out in 2010 and vote Obama out 2 years later.