Back to Business As Usual

Over at the NYTimes today, Paul Krugman has some words of encouragement for the dark days ahead:

Rather than catering to voters who will never support them, the Democrats - who are doing pretty well at getting the votes of moderates and independents - need to become equally effective at mobilizing their own base.

Democrats shouldn't cave in to Mr. Bush when he tries to appoint highly partisan judges - even when the effort to block a bad appointment fails, it will show supporters that the party stands for something. They should gear up for a bid to retake the Senate or at least make a major dent in the Republican lead. They should keep the pressure on Mr. Bush when he makes terrible policy decisions, which he will.

It's all right to take a few weeks to think it over. (Heads up to readers: I'll be starting a long-planned break next week, to work on a economics textbook. I'll be back in January.) But Democrats mustn't give up the fight. What's at stake isn't just the fate of their party, but the fate of America as we know it.

But Krugman isn't taking a complete break...he'll be speaking in Philly on the fallout of the election at the National Constitution Center on November 18, and we'll be there to see him.

And speaking of Philadelphia, over at The New York Observer, Phillip Weiss has an interesting piece on local reaction to the election. Yes, it was all that.

And say a prayer for Elizabeth Edwards, who's fighting breast cancer. It won't change things for her, but might make her feel better, if Lincoln Chaffee of Rhode Island follows through on his consideration to switch parties, and give the Dems back the seat they lost in the Senate. Maybe the rag-rag remanders of the once-proud moderate Republican wing can be convinced to finally see the light.