And now for the next battle

By E.J. Dionne Jr.
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 3, 2010;

President Obama allowed Republicans to define the terms of the nation's political argument for the past two years and permitted them to draw battle lines the way they wanted. Neither he nor his party can let that happen again.

Democrats would be foolish to turn in on themselves in a fruitless battle over whether their troubles owe to a failure to mobilize and excite their base or to win support from the political center. In fact, Democrats held onto moderate voters while losing independents. What hurt them most was this brute fact: Voters younger than 30 made up 18 percent of the electorate in 2008 but only about half that on Tuesday, according to network exit polls. This verdict was rendered by a much older and much more conservative electorate. Yes, there was an enthusiasm gap.

This only underscored that Tuesday's results mark the beginning of the next round, not the end of the contest. Before the next election - which will be decided by a broader electorate - progressives, including Obama, have to be wiser about the fights they pick, more focused on the country's economic pain, and as shrewd as their adversaries have been in promoting debates that rally their troops and advance their goals.

Obama was not wrong to fight for health care, to stimulate the economy when it was in deep peril, or to push for financial reform. But by failing to defend these achievements, the president and his allies opened the way for partisan critics, who shifted the conversation to airy language about "big government" and "bailouts." One result: Only a third of Tuesday's electorate, exit polls indicated, thought the stimulus had made the economy better.

(More here.)