Things are looking brighter

I’m still wary of being overly optimistic about the upcoming mid-term elections, but stories like this one are beginning to give me hope that the American electorate may have finally regained its sanity.

This administration has been a complete and total disaster by every conceivable measure. There is nothing they can show as a positive in trying to make the case for keeping their party in power and the best they can do is yell “Booga, booga!! The terrorists are gonna’ get you!!” at every opportunity.

There was a graphic that ran in Sunday’s NY Times that made a particularly compelling case about the precarious position House Republicans find themselves in today. It compared a number of statistics between past mid-term elections and the one coming up next month. Here is the gist of it looking at the 1994 election that ushered the Republicans into power 12 long years ago:

President’s approval rating:

1994: 45 percent
2006: 37 percent

Percent of voters who say their vote will be against the president:

1994: 18 percent
2006: 35 percent

Congress’ approval rating:

1994: 27 percent
2006: 27 percent

Favorable rating of the Republican Party:

1994: 63 percent
2006: 40 percent

Percent satisfied with national conditions:

1994: 24 percent
2006: 30 percent

Gasoline prices per gallon:

1994: $1.52
2006: $2.92

In 1994, Democrats lost 53 House seats as Republicans took majority control of Congress for the first time in decades.
In 2006, Republicans need only lose 15 House seats to lose their tentative grip on the House majority.