We Deserved To Lose

I believe that there's no single person who more perfectly represents what's wrong with American politics than Mitch McConnell. I also believe that his opponent, Alison Lundergan Grimes, a Democrat, deserved to lose. Her refusal to admit that she voted for Obama, her insistence that her silence was based on her right to privacy, was a true profile in cowardice. You're asking to be elected by your fellow citizens, which means that what you believe and who you believe in are no longer private. It's why they call it public office. Unfortunately, Ms. Lundergan Grimes was hardly alone. The truth is, while the Republicans definitely didn't deserve to win, the Democrats most certainly deserved to lose.

On Morning Joe on the day of the election, Joe Scarborough was talking about what the Democrats should have done, which was to trumpet the successes of their President. There are actually many of those successes, though you would never know it by listening to members of his own party. Steve Schmidt, the Republican strategist-turned-pundit, responded to Scarborough by pointing out that this strategy also happens to be "the only pass over the mountain." In other words, it's simply not possible to run as a Democrat while simultaneously running from being a Democrat.

Everyone is asking what this election taught us, what the lesson is for Democrats. The thing is, these lessons weren't taught to us on Election Day. They were taught to us in grade school. Start by being yourself. Embrace your successes, acknowledge your failures. Be strong, but not arrogant. Be cautious, but not fearful. Be courageous, but not reckless. Be righteous, but not self-righteous. Be truthful and be true. Stand up. Rise up. Because for all of us, it's the only pass over the mountain.