Permanently Blue

Republicans are confident they are poised to build a wave as large as the one that swept them into power in 1994. Yet, just as in 1946, the party is poised to regain the majority while still weak, and without a strategy for going forward.

There's no question that Republicans are benefiting from having redistricting occur after the November election and not before it. But there is a difference between being better off and being in good shape.

Republicans are poised to ride a wave election, conceivably as large as in 1994, and Exhibit A of their success may well be pronounced "Speaker John Boehner." But if you step back, it's also likely to be a temporary bump on a road toward Democratic dominance.