Election post-mortem II

A few more thoughts:

• While health care, at least in its current iteration, may be dead, President Obama's presidency certainly is not. Get that straight. And do not make it personal. Opposing Obama's agenda and opposing him out of spite are two completely different things. Again, reference Scott Brown's positive campaign.
  

• I'm glad Scott Brown won. He ran a good campaign and seems like a nice guy. And I'm really thrilled for what his victory means for ObamaCare. But let's not deify him just yet -- there are a lot of question marks about exactly what he believes. I suspect that, in the end, he will prove conservative in the context of Massachusetts politics, but is hardly going to lead the charge against the welfare state.

• I really liked Brown's speech last night. My favorite moment may have been when party attendees began shouting "gas up the truck!"
  

• I think Republicans would be well advised to maintain their stance in direct opposition to the Democratic agenda. A majority of voters hate it, and Republicans should portray themselves as the padlock on the asylum gates. Even a watered-down Democratic health care bill is still going to be worse than the status quo, so what's the point in compromising?

• That said, Republicans need to start thinking of a positive agenda to campaign on in the fall. While opposing ObamaCare will curry some favor with a number of voters, I think Republicans should be ready to articulate an alternative approach based on limited government and the free market.