Super-Majority

It seems all polls at this point are signaling the entrance of Obama into the presidential suite. But America needs to consider one of the biggest implications of electing a Democrat. Republicans are taking notice of this, and in the past few weeks they have been running ads not against Obama, but against the idea of a super-majority should Obama win the election. These ads represent the concession of the election to Obama, and symbolize a last minute plea to the public to give some seats in the Senate and House to the Republicans. 

Democrats are predicted to gain a large percentage of new seats, even in traditionally red districts. According to a New York Times article Democrats have spent extraordinary amounts on advertising and campaigning for congressional seats, sensing their opportunity to vastly expand. "Democrats bought advertising in 63 districts, twice the number of districts where Republicans bought advertising and helped candidates." Democrats are reaching beyond their success in the midterm election, and are now in the position to gain vast amounts of suburban (typically Republican) votes. Their success has stemmed mostly from the ever troublesome economy. 

Democrats are already in control of the House and Senate, and post-election, will inevitably still have this power. With the election of Obama, this creates a Democratic super-majority in which Democrats essentially hold all the political cards. While I tend to lean left on most issues, there are some issues where I side with conservatives; this is why so much Democratic control scares me. Gridlock is an inherent key component within our democratic system, and legal progress is should be kept to a minimum. The system is designed with so many bill passage complications so that only the most popular, refined, and beneficial bills get passed with a sweeping majority. If Democrats have executive power combined with a congressional majority, it bypasses this check within the system. Any Republican filibuster would be killed by a vote, and any popular Democratic policy will be passed, especially if it's supported by a new president with coat-tails. 

However, I also think while in the president's first 100 days, a lot of bills will get passed, House and Senate members will reach across the aisle, and make many compromises to conservatives in order to pander to moderate or fiscally conservative constituents. 

My point is not to say passing Democratic policies are bad, and by no means would I vote McCain because of the super-majority threat. I just don't think this implication has gotten much attention, and I wanted to put it out there; because it is kind of a scary impact of the election.