Thought experiment: Would President Warren actually have any different results than Obama

[BlueStreak]

32. Maybe there are two waves

I think 2016 could be a "wave" in the same sense that the first black President generated an abnormal amount of energy. The Senate numbers for 2016 are already favorable, and if there is a legitimate chance of electing the first female President (Warren or Clinton -- but Warren says she's not running) that definitely could generate energy equal to 2008, and result in taking at least a slim majority in the House despite Gerrymandering.

But the wave I'm thinking of is a much bigger one. The country is not "right" or "Center right". The country is DEMORALIZED because we know we're getting screwed and don't see any way out. We have that much in common with the Tea Party. When you look at polling on all the great issues -- whether it is the climate, economic fairness, wealth distribution, freeloading corporations, the need for investment in infrastructure. commitment to public education, health care, etc.-- Americans STRONGLY support the progressive positions. Americans support positions FAR more progressive than anything President Obama has fought for.

On top of that, we have radically changing demographics, that include Asians and Hispanic immigrants, and they have very little love for the GOP. So if the universe were working correctly, we should be right in the middle of an extremely progressive period in our politics. A slight majority in the House, a slight majority in the Senate and even a convincing win for the WH does not match where we should be.

I am suggesting that people like Harry Truman and FDR fought openly and vigorously for the causes of liberalism. Without leaders that fight for that, how can we expect the public to be very enthusiastic? So I am suggesting that if there were a real progressive fighter in the White House, whether it is Teddy Kennedy, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren or fill-in-the-blank, that could lead to THE REAL WAVE -- the one that gets away from the 51-49 crap and aligns our representation with the true progressive preference of the broad public.