As Barack Obama and Sarah Palin make final midterm pitches, it's Americans' turn to speak

Sarah Palin has been traveling around the country in recent weeks, slyly telling appreciative conservative crowds, "Nov. 2d, we can see it from our house."

This morning everyone can see Nov. 2d. Election Day is here. Many millions of Americans have already early-voted, including the country's top Chicago Democrat.

But by the end of the day in Palin's Alaska, the state so large it has its own time zone, most of those votes will be counted and some kind of history will be made in the first midterm elections of President Barack H. Obama.

At stake are 37 governorships, 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 37 seats in the ...

... U.S. Senate, including the Illinois one Obama used to occupy occasionally in between his frequent presidential campaign forays. Also at stake are some 6,300 state legislature positions, whose members in 2011 will do most if not all of the crucial legislative redistricting that sets the geographic and demographic parameters for the entire country's next decade of politicking.

With virtually every poll indicating a gloomy electoral day on tap for his party, the Democrat is hunkered in the Oval Office for regular briefings and granting be-sure-to-vote telephone interviews to four radio stations in Florida, Illinois, California and Nevada, interviews that in the interests of transparency are closed for Washington media to hear.

What to watch for tonight:

If Republicans pick up some House seats in New England, the governor's office in Ohio and Massachusetts, the Pennsylvania, Indiana, West Virginia and Illinois Senate seats, hold off on the second order of pizzas; it's going to be a short night for planned Democratic parties all over.

If the GOP gains 40 new House seats, Nancy Pelosi becomes an ex-speaker in January.

If the GOP wins 55 or more new House seats, it's worse than Bill Clinton's loss of 54 in 1994, which was the latest worst since FDR lost 55 in 1942.

Based on its modeling this time, Gallup has predicted a swing of 60 seats from Democratic to Republican, possibly more.

In the unlikely event the Democrats lose 72 or more seats, it becomes the worst midterm result for a president's party since the economically troubled Democratic Grover Cleveland administration of 1894, which was even before Joe Biden was a senator.

That year Republicans engineered American history's largest House swing, 130 seats in a chamber then consisting of 357 members. And President Cleveland didn't even have an economic stimulus plan that didn't work.

Across the country as you read this, most candidates themselves will be voting in order to create a free media opportunity to make one more public pitch with the talking points they can now say in their sleep.

Shortly after breakfast the first wave of exit polls will begin flowing into the major candidates' strategists, providing an inkling of what fate has in store for them. Thirty seconds later, the leaking of encouraging ones will begin.

From her Facebook perch, Palin issued another call to conservative arms overnight:

"Before you head to the polling place," Palin said, "take a moment to remember March 21st, when the Pelosi Congress cast its vote for Obamacare. The enduring image of that day is one of Congressional Democrats arrogantly dismissing the pleas of thousands of Americans gathered outside the Capitol Building begging them not to inflict this disastrous bill on us."

She added:

In the end this bill wasn’t about health care reform; it was about control and government mandates and fines for not purchasing a government-approved insurance plan.... They voted against our will that day ... it’s our turn to vote against them and put our government back on the side of the people.

This is our chance to rebuke their big government power grab, reject their unwanted “fundamental transformation” of America, and start the process of repealing this bill before it buries us under a mountain of debt.  So let’s fire Pelosi, retire Reid, and send all those who were responsible for that disgraceful bill a message that America is still about “We the People.”

Oh, and this morning Palin's 2008 debate opponent, Biden, will vote in Delaware, probably not for the female candidate who wants his old Senate chair.

Related Items:

Final Gallup Poll sees historic GOP wave into 'uncharted territory' of 60-seat gain or beyond

Last-minute Rocky Mountain Hi: Palin backs third party Tom Tancredo for Colorado governor

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Randy Snyder / Getty Images (Palin campaigns in West Virginia last weekend); Larry Downing / Reuters (Obama enjoys a Cleveland campaign rally Sunday).

Photos: California heads to the polls

Photos: The nation heads to the polls

Comments

[DL]

It puzzles me how anyone could put Obama and Palin in the same headline--suggesting they should be considered in an equally thoughtful manner. Palin has not demonstrated the ability to stay with a position she was elected to. She bowed out when, as I see it, the position didn't offer her what she wanted. Now that's the kind of gumption we really need, right? (Not) Since she resigned from her position, she has followed the money, seeking to increase her personal wealth. There's nothing wrong with that, but it should be seen for what it is: interest primarily in the self. What has she actually done for any of her constituents? (And, yes, other than the townfolk of Wasilla, it's hard to find Alaskans who support her.)

However, Obama came in when things were tough and they have gotten tougher. The banking fiasco he inherited, along with the need to do something about the huge, failing auto industry. If you do any research, you will see that the auto bailout has been universely deemed a success--with GM paying back (so far) a high percentage of the loans. The same is true of the banking mess. The trillion dollars spent on both wars so far (and begun five or more years before Obama took office) have drained our coffers to the tune of some one trillion. Imagine what that money could have done for the U.S. infrastructure, jobs, etc. [Note:that's not to mention how wonderful it would have been not to have lost 4500 American lives, along with countless Iraqi and Afghani civilian lives.] Then there are the jobs that went to China and continue to do so. If you buy lots of cheap Chinese goods (mostly at Wal-Mart), you've helped those manufacturers & manufacturing jobs go overseas. Check out "Is Wal-Mart Good for America?", a brief film. So Obama inherited an economy linked--as all economies are--to a global economy, which has been greatly troubled. That's along with OUR shopping habits sending manufacturing jobs overseas. Now whatever you think about the health care initiatives, know that it is UNCIVILIZED for a so-called superpower to have such limited medical safety nets for its citizens. No other country of our size/power tosses people off health insurance due to pre-existing conditions! No other country our size/etc. does not offer its children health care. (And, as logic suggests, those actions cost: people lose work, the ability to work, etc. when health care is non-existent or limited. Too bad folks can't factor those costs into things when they view the cost of increasing our health insurance to where it should be.)
At any rate, Sarah Palin seems unable to reflect on her many shortcomings--lack of education, experience, travel, and knowledge of issues. What she's doing in a piece with Obama reinforces how poor American's critical thinking skills have become.

[James]

To DL, the Democrat Leftis. Why can't you put Obama and Palin in the same headline? are you simply a racist, sexist or just stupid? I think Palin did a great job helping the Republican and female politicians winning the senate seats.
While Obama are giving too much of credits bailing out those bankers and extending the foreclosing home owners. First, bankers are just services type of business. One failed, another rises. That was waste of money. And helping the foreclosures, they just can't be help, for a few months? in Sept, we got a very high foreclosure rate because of the help? Those might have just been foreclosed earlier of the year. Another example throwing money to the ocean. On the other hand, bailing out the auto companies like GM and Chrysler, i do agree with it. Because our country can't lose more of this type of businesses. But why giving Obama all the credits bailing the auto companies out? This was started since Bush were in the Office.
Health care is another stupid plan, too many pages, too much! it's unconstitutional! That's it, end of the story. Those people who can't afford to get insurance today will more likely to get medicare or medicaid.
My final word is if Obama is so great, he should let all of us not to work and still get free lunches. Well, you going to say this won't work. of course it won't , so why would this bull$$hit health care reform work?