The polls aren’t even open yet, and countless contests are too close to call, but we already know what’s going to happen Wednesday morning.
The country’s top Democrats – President Barack Obama, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine and others – will take stock of the damage, then grudgingly make their way to the cameras and say. . .something.
They’ll be expected to offer some explanation for their defeats — and indeed, Obama is expected to take questions from reporters before he heads overseas at week's end, Democrats tell POLITICO. And they’ll have to signal quickly whether they’re going to be basically combative or basically conciliatory toward a Congress that’s shifted to the right. The new strategy might not be fully apparent for weeks or even months, but the initial response will offer clues to what to expect.