By Marcial Bonifacio

My friends and American countrymen, many say that the Republican victory in the 2010 midterm election was a referendum on the unconstitutional healthcare bill commonly referred to as "Obamacare", which Obama signed into law in March of the same year.  As a result, Obama himself admitted the Democrats took a "shellacking" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kXjC2mZTfA).  The following midterm election on the 4th of November of 2014 yielded results no less impressive for the GOP.

In their unseating of Democrats in North Carolina, Colorado, Iowa, West Virginia, Arkansas, Montana and South Dakota, the American people have clearly repudiated the policies of Obama (which he himself said were on the ballot) and his management (or mismanagement) of various controversial issues.  Among them are Obamacare, the Middle East crisis (ISIS in Iraq, Iran's development of nuclear weapons, Syria's civil war), the nearly 50 million people receiving food stamps, the pending scandals (IRS, Fast and Furious, VA), and immigration reform.  Also, it was just discovered that the chief architect of Obamacare, Jonathan Gruber, admitted to the necessity for a "lack of transparency" in passing the bill.  "Call it the stupidity of the American voter or whatever," stated Gruber, "but basically that was really, really critical for the thing to pass..."  That only adds insult to Obama's disingenuous promise (made at least 36 times) that anyone can keep their current doctor, healthcare plan, or insurance, if they so choose (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpa-5JdCnmo).

Anyway, here are some noteworthy observations pertaining to the midterm election results.  In the House, the Republicans have gained twelve net seats, putting them in control of at least 246 seats.  They also won nine net seats in the Senate, which puts them at a total of 54.  Noteworthy is the Louisiana Senate run-off election, whereby Rep. Bill Cassidy defeated three-term Senator Mary Landrieu by a wide margin (56-44 percent).  Although such wins do not give Republicans the 60 votes to quash a filibuster or a two-thirds majority (67) to override Obama's veto power, they do coerce the Democrats into a position to work in bipartisanship with Republicans, since the obstructionist Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (who has effectively stifled about 300 Republican bills from coming to a vote on the Senate floor) will be replaced by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.  Some Democrats may even become Republicans as my colleague at thepoliticalprophet.com predicts Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia will do (http://www.thepoliticalprophet.com/predictions/joe-will-go-gop/).

Aside from their victory in both houses of the U.S. Congress, the Republicans have also gained more than 330 seats out of 649 up for election in the state legislatures throughout the country, a number not seen since the 1920s (http://www.wnd.com/2014/11/gop-wave-more-massive-than-anyone-realized/).  Among the ten newly GOP-dominated chambers are the Colorado Senate, the Maine Senate, the Maine House, the Nevada Assembly, the Nevada Senate, the New Hampshire House, the New York Senate, the New Mexico House, the Washington Senate and the West Virginia House of Delegates (the first time in eighty years).  This places them in control of 68 of 98 chambers in all 50 states, which is a record high in the history of the Republican Party (http://www.christianpost.com/news/republican-party-historic-high-gop-controls-68-of-98-state-legislatures-129545/).

The gubernatorial races yielded Republican gains in the bluest of states in Massachusetts, Maryland, and Illinois (Obama's home state), while retaining Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida, Maine, and Kansas. Also noteworthy is Scott Walker's re-election as governor in Wisconsin. Indeed, he has proven to be a formidable candidate, since his first gubernatorial win resulted in a recall election, which won him even more votes.  In Michigan, despite Gov. Rick Synder's passing of a "Right to Work" law and staunch union opposition, Synder retained his position.  In Maryland (wherein Democrats outnumber Republicans and Independents combined), Larry Hogan beat the incumbent Democrat Martin O' Malley.  In Texas, Greg Abbott beat Wendy Davis by nearly one million votes, while Davis' state senate seat was won by a conservative female.  Such gubernatorial wins puts the GOP at 31 governorships.  However in 24 states, they control the governorship and both chambers of the state legislatures, while the Democrats dominate only 7 states (http://hotair.com/archives/2014/11/05/out-of-the-gate-obama-reminds-the-gop-a-majority-didnt-vote-for-them/).

In terms of the minority vote, Tim Scott was elected to the Senate in South Carolina, the first black American elected in a southern state since Reconstruction.  In Utah, Mia Love became the first black Republican female to serve in Congress.  In West Virginia, Shelly Moore Capito became the first female Senator, while Saira Blair was elected to the state house as the youngest female representative at the age of 18 years-old (http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2014/11/04/west-virginia-elects-americas-youngest-state-lawmaker/).  Joni Ernst became the first female Senator to win any public office in Iowa for governor, Senate, or House.  In New York, Elise Stefanik won in the House, becoming the youngest Congresswoman (30 years-old) ever to serve.  Has there been any acknowledgement by the Rev. Al Sharpton or the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) or Sandra Fluke or the NOW (National Organization for Women) of such racial or gender progress?  It seems they only represent blacks and women, who are Democrats or leftists.  So much for the fallacy of the "War on Women and Blacks."

Finally, in spite of such wins for the GOP, the Tea Party has also made some notable gains.  Among them are Tom Cotton in Arkansas and Ben Sasse in Nebraska for the Senate.  In the House, David Brat of Virginia, Ken Buck of Colorado, Tom Emmer of Minnesota, Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin, Jody Hice and Barry Loudermilk of Georgia, Alex Mooney of West Virginia, Gary Palmer of Alabama, and John Ratcliffe of Texas.  The reason these particular public servants are significant is because they are the ones who will keep the Republican Party in line with the principles of the Constitution and the vision of our founding fathers.

Anyway, give yourselves a big round of applause for such a historical victory.  All this goes to show that even under a tyrannical government as the Obama administration, the spirit of liberty and the will of the American people cannot be easily subdued. However, remember that this is only one step among several to restore our constitutionally limited government and the vision of our founding fathers.  Our focus now should be to ensure that our elected Republicans represent our conservative principles in legislation and resolve the current issues (e.g., Obamacare, immigration reform, tax reform, energy independence, unemployment).  If not, we should hold them accountable in the town hall meetings, on the telephone, and at the polls.  Let us all always remember what the wise President Ronald Reagan has said, "Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction.  It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people."  Therefore, my friends and countrymen, let us all take full advantage of the opportunity that this momentous occasion has brought forth.

Long live liberty!  Long live the U.S.A.!

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