“On Tuesday night, the American people voted overwhelmingly to take this country in a new direction. Today with Jim Webb’s election secured, it’s official that we have a Democratic Senate and a Democratic House.
“With both the House and Senate led by Democrats, we have a chance to get America back on the right track. In the Senate, I will first and foremost focus on the disaster in Iraq, setting a deadline so we can end the war and bring our brave heroes home.
“We will work to put the focus on the real priorities of Americans: raising the minimum wage, protecting the environment, and providing affordable health care for every American – starting with our children.
“I will continue to work with Sen. Kennedy, Congressman Markey, and our entire delegation to make higher education more affordable. I will work to make sure Massachusetts stays on the cutting edge of both technology and education. And by helping keep our state a great place to live, I will work to ensure that people don’t have to leave Massachusetts.
“The American people have spoken loud and clear, and we are eager to work in the new congress to help Massachusetts and our country move forward.”
By The Associated Press 12 minutes ago
How voters felt about the war in Iraq, according to exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and the networks. The poll of 13,485 voters was taken at selected precincts nationwide on Election Day and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1 percentage point.
IRAQ APPROVAL: More than half of voters, 55 percent, said they disapproved of the war in Iraq, and they were far more likely to vote for Democratic House candidates. A quarter of conservatives and almost as many Republicans disapprove.
U.S. SECURITY: Six in 10 said the war in Iraq has not made the United States more secure. Those voters were far more inclined to vote for Democratic candidates. More than eight in 10 Democrats and seven in 10 independents felt that way.
BRING TROOPS HOME: More than half of voters, 55 percent, favored bringing some or all troops home from Iraq. A fourth said the U.S. should withdraw some troops and three in 10 said all troops should be withdrawn. More than eight in 10 Democrats said some or all troops should be withdrawn while six in 10 independents felt that way. A fourth of Republicans want to withdraw some or all of the troops from Iraq.
IRAQ's IMPORTANCE AS AN ISSUE: Two-thirds of voters said Iraq was very or extremely important to them. Those who said they were "extremely" concerned were more likely to vote Democratic.
more...The Strategy
By ADAM NAGOURNEY
Published: November 9, 2006
From October on, in stump speeches and television advertisements, the Democrats moved the war front and center. Republican candidates began to avoid the issue. Yet to the increasing distress of Republican Party strategists, the White House appeared to play into Democratic hands, as Mr. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney continued to offer arguments for victory .
“Iraq was the driving factor behind everything,” Mr. Emanuel said, in an assessment that drew little argument from his Republican counterparts yesterday. “And October was a disastrous month.”
Snip...
Mr. Emanuel said that in the end he had no doubt of the power of the war as an issue, but he said that was not always the case: When Representative John P. Murtha, Democrat of Pennsylvania, called for withdrawal of troops, gaining wide publicity and highlighting divisions among Democrats over the war, Mr. Emanuel was filled with gloom.
“I was wrong, no doubt about it,” he said.
Snip...
The White House political strategy to embrace Iraq was set early last year. To make the case of the war’s political power, Mr. Rove would typically draw a pie chart — often on a napkin — that showed that while the country was polarized on the issue of the war, there was a sliver of independents who had once supported it, and later soured on it, but who could be brought back into the Republican camp.
The extent of that miscalculation became clear in New Jersey earlier this campaign season as Republicans conducted a poll to use against Senator Robert Menendez, a Democrat, who was battered by accusations of corruption and who was running against Thomas Kean Jr., an initial supporter of the war. Respondents were given a choice between a candidate with a history of corruption, facing possible indictment, versus a candidate who supported the war. Each received 40 percent, a sobering finding for Republicans.
more...
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