President Obama has a long night to think about what he wants to do going forward. No matter how much some would like to spin the election results, one thing is clear: the country has rejected the current leadership. And that rejection starts first and foremost with President Obama.
Every race was run against him. He said it himself when he said that although he was not on the ballot, his policies were. And they were soundly rejected.
These are the policies implemented by his political operatives. People like Eric Holder, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton, Kathleen Sebelius and Lois Lerner.
It is the incompetence with which simple issues like responses to terrorist attacks or Ebola or a website rollout are constantly mishandled. It is the politicization and manipulation of every word that comes out of their mouths; the “if you like your plan, you can keep it” or being “fully confidence” on proven failures like the Obamacare website. It is the race baiting and the silly “war on women” rhetoric that was perhaps the biggest failure of all in a night full of enormous failures. It is the pettiness with which Harry Reid destroyed decades of comradery in the senate, in exchange for self-aggrandizement. Or the way Lois Lerner still collects a $100,000 plus pension from the taxpayers after illegally using the IRS to target conservatives.
We could go on.
But the bottom line is the American people demand a change. Will Obama listen?
I certainly hope so. And the only way to do that is to stop listening to the political machines that surround him. People are policy, and President Obama must make a change among his advisers if he is to make any progress going forward.
In some ways, Americans want him to deliver on promises he made from the beginning of his candidacy, like his promise to bringing Americans together. He has been such a disappointment in that regard. What happened to that candidate? Did it never exist? President Obama demonizes and ridicules those with whom he disagrees. Will he continue to behave in this way with the new Senate?
I pray this election serves as a form of inspiration for the president. I hope he takes this opportunity to show another side of his character. A side willing to treat those with whom he disagrees with respect and dignity, instead of going it alone as he has done time and again trying to circumvent any other authority but his. We need a leader who will work hard with Congress not against Congress. A house divided against itself cannot stand. President Obama is living proof of the old Biblical truth.
America is falling. Most can feel it and want something to be done about it.
This is a time for unity – a time to work. It is a time for governing. It is not a time for political retribution. It is a time to listen and do what is best for the American people and not special interests.
Most of all, I hope the president realizes that it is not about him, but about the country. Oh, how I pray that he pays no attention to those coming to him with a vision of “his legacy.”
The new Senate and House leaders will also face some challenges. They must see this at the beginning of their journey and not the end, after all the work they have invested on the campaign trail. The proof is in the pudding, as the saying goes. Now the real work begins.
This could be a turning point. One cannot help but be encouraged by such a promising class of freshmen coming to Washington. But they don’t have much time. Americans are hurting, and they are tired of the same political games. They must deliver.
I believe they will. And Concerned Women for America (CWA) is committed to help in any way we can.