You don’t want “that much government” in your life is one resounding message you sent Washington yesterday. There isn’t any doubt it was a historic 2010 mid-term election: a referendum on President Obama’s agenda. A huge win for the Tea Party. The question now is where does Obama go from here? And how does the Tea Party influence Washington bureaucrats?
A sudden shift to the center would be out of character, even if Obama claims to hear the voters, who he recently referred to as enemies. A more likely scenario is that he becomes the veto president heading into 2012. Another take-away, that I’ll touch upon in a moment, is the surprisingly large number of Americans who still seem to want big government in their lives, especially in Nevada and West Virginia. How much union money is out there? President Obama may take these huge wins as an endorsement for his union centric agenda.
First, let’s look at Obama’s veto power as vested by Article I, Section 7 of the Constitution. Since the federal government’s founding in 1789, presidents have issued 2,564 vetoes of which 1,479 have been regular vetoes and 1,067 pocket vetoes. Regular vetoes are sent back to Congress by the President and require a two-thirds majority by both chambers for eventual passage. Pocket vetoes are issued when Congress is at recess and therefore a brand new bill must be created.
The Congressional Research Service illustrates that of the 1,479 regular vetoes 110 (7.3%) have been overridden. Since 1961, when JFK was in office, there have been 232 regular vetoes and 37 (15.9%) overridden. Not a real impressive override average but certainly an uptrend. What we know from yesterday’s anti Obama vote is that historic progress is being made in moving members of Congress, on both sides of the aisle, towards a more fiscal conservative agenda. Will both sides of the aisle come together to override his vetoes? Based on yesterday’s results it’s a direct mandate from voters.
If President Obama continues governing to the far left and vetoes bills and then Congress fails to override them, look out. The Tea Party movement which no doubt was the biggest winner in the 2010 midterm will fuel a tidal wave in 2012 much larger by comparison. A clear path will be cut to repeal and replace the Obama agenda. You almost hope for the vetoes not to be overridden.
What is still unclear, especially with Senator Harry Reid’s win in Nevada and Manchin’s win in West Virginia, is how much government Americans want in their lives. Will good old Harry Reid and new yet old Democrat Manchin live up to their campaign promises? Unions will make sure they do. Can they embrace the Tea Party? I doubt it. They have far too many favors to repay.
Money flowing from unions has put their key players in Congress making it one of the key issues for 2012. Do you want a country that promotes entrepreneurs and real jobs or more unions and big government that kill them? It’s time for a conservative awakening.
