What did we learn

The off season elections took place yesterday. There were some wins, some losses. What did we learn from them? Did we learn anything at all?

First and foremost, I would hope that the GOP learned a huge and valuable lesson. Although I will not hold my breath on that one. It seems the Republican Blue Bloods are quick to spin the elections almost as fast as the Democrats.

Clearly from what most of us on the right side of the political isle can see is that there was a massive shift back to the right. There was also a massive rebuke of our sitting president. After all, Obama put a lot of political clout on the line when he went to bat so heavily for Corzine of New Jersey.

The biggest lesson the GOP and the Democrats should learn comes from Upstate New York where an upstart, never before elected, Doug Hoffman almost walked away with the prize.

Hoffman did not get the nod as the GOP nominee in the special election. The GOP instead appointed a liberal Republican to run against a liberal Democrat. Hoffman, rightfully so, did not see that the voters had a choice in that match up so he put his hat in the ring.

No big money backers, no party backing. Just a grass roots effort that almost paid off. But wait, it did pay off and it paid off big time.

Hoffman not only began to raise money and get his message out even though he was not being covered at first by the Lame Stream Media, he moved up in the polls and he moved up rather fast.

So fast was his ascension that the Republican Nominee withdrew from the race at the last minute because she was polling a distant third. But then of course as we all knew, the Republican nominee, being as liberal as she is, put her support behind the Democrat. That caused the GOP to scramble to back and support, although from afar, Hoffman.

The lesson is that Hoffman was a clear conservative cut from the Reagan cloth. People began to hear his message and they began to agree with it. All the Democrats could do was pray that the clock would run out on Hoffman and try to stunt his growth by saying there was too much "outside" influence in the campaign. Which is very laughable since Hoffman did not have big money backers like the Democrat Owens did.

What the GOP should have learned is that Reagan Conservatives still live and breath and that this is what the people really want. True conservatives. In fact, it looks as though some dozen Republicans will be facing stiff competition for nominations for their seats in the 2010 mid-term elections. True Conservatives have put the GOP on notice. Shape up or they will vote you out.

That is the lesson the GOP should have learned.