January 2010: Massachusetts elects a Republican Senator.
November 2, 2010: Republicans gain at least 60 House seats, at least six Senate seats, and at least eleven Governorships.
November 3, 2010:
Obama has had weeks to brace for the worst, unlike Clinton, who was blindsided by the ’94 results. But some of Obama’s allies fear he will take Tuesday’s results too much in stride. That perception was fueled by Axelrod, who told a gathering of Democrats earlier this week that he didn’t interpret Tuesday’s expected debacle as a rejection of the president.
“I’m not sure [Obama] gets it yet,” said one person close to the president.
If the president doesn't "get it" today, he never will. For those seeking clues about whether the president will tack to the center, this is a pretty telling one. The only rebuke Obama and Axelrod might comprehend is a defeat in 2012. Even then, I'm not sure. I can picture Axelrod spinning about how a direct defeat didn't really "represent a rejection of the president."