A Short Story

post from Daily Kos on 16 May 2008 11:55:05 AM. © Daily Kos

An abbreviated look at the media's take on the current state of the Republican Party.

Republican defeat...waves of apprehension across an already troubled party...heavy losses in the fall...a once-steadfast Republican district...foreshadowing more losses for the party in November...the Republican label seems tarnished...level of distress was evident...issued a dire warning...the Republican Party had been severely damaged...could lose 20 seats in the House and 6 in the Senate...putting into play Southern seats that were once solidly Republican...the string of Republican losses suggested a problem with the Republican label...a tense, private post-mortem...worried House Republicans demanded that their leadership come up with a plan to stave off potentially devastating losses...vast dissatisfaction, frustration and discouragement...The Republican brand is down...the results in these special elections portend ominously for House Republicans...some expressed despair about the months ahead...

The Associated Press:

Stunned House Republicans...their third straight election defeat in once-friendly territory...the worst since Watergate and far more toxic than the fall of 2006 when we lost 30 seats...President Bush is unpopular...Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee enjoyed a cash advantage of $44 million to $7 million...that had been in Republican hands for three decades...necessitated by resignations by incumbent Republicans...backfire...We're not going to be able to scare people into voting Republican... the loss of three seats in special elections was a significant blow... They are canaries in the coal mine, warning of far greater losses in the fall...leaves Republicans with only 199 seats, compared with 236 for the Democrats...fathered a child out of wedlock...given the party's financial problems...

And the Washington Post:

House Republicans turned on themselves yesterday...contemplating widespread Democratic gains in November...decried their leadership as out of touch with the political catastrophe they face..."The Change You Deserve" -- came under mocking fire...mirrors the advertising slogan for the antidepressant Effexor...a deficiency in our message and a loss of confidence in the American people...loss in northern Mississippi was devastating...Republicans face a flood of retirements...badly damaged by scandals...Republican strategists were downcast...fail to understand the deep seeded antipathy toward the President, the war, gas prices, the economy, foreclosures...a tense closed-door meeting...I've never seen members so frustrated or demoralized...

Good times.