Public thinks a GOP Senate wouldn't change much

Democrats are voting early in large numbers, but Republicans are likely to overwhelm polling places on Tuesday. That’s the conventional wisdom heading into the weekend before mid-term elections.

And while most people believe Republicans will regain control of the Senate, at least one poll shows a solid majority say President Obama’s performance is not a factor in how they intend to vote.

All of which seems to confirm the adage that all politics is local, and that local issues matter most.


However, this does not take Washington off the hook. The same poll, conducted by the Washington 

Post, found 60 percent said they don’t trust government to do what’s right, and 68 percent think the country is headed in the wrong direction.

And before Republicans get too giddy about the possibility of controlling Congress, the poll found people aren’t terribly excited about that, even if they’re voting for it. Thirty-nine percent said a Republican Congress would make little difference, and 24 percent said it would be a bad thing.

The two parties were in a virtual tie when it came to opinions about which is best able to cope with the nation’s problems going forward, with 39 percent saying Democrats and 37 percent Republicans; 14 percent said neither party.

In other words, voters are cynical and pessimistic. They see Washington as in the hands of Republicrats, or Demoblicans. Obama’s 2008 slogan, “Yes we can,” has turned back into, “You probably won’t.”

In politics, getting elected, and then re-elected, is the name of the game. Politicians might secure their positions a bit more, however, if they were willing to work toward solutions, even if that meant reaching across the aisle now and then.

Even a resounding Republican victory on Tuesday won’t give the party enough of an edge to override vetoes. If Republicans dedicate the next two years to embarrassing the president in hopes of winning the White House in ’16, all that cynicism will continue to fester, and who knows what that might translate to next time around.