Hope and Change --> Hope he Fails

There are catchphrases and slogans that people associate with certain people, especially in politics. From “I like Ike” to “Compassionate Conservatism,” people in the realm of politics use these phrases to rally the populace to their cause. These slogans are short, sweet, and gets to the point.

In 2008, the phrase that swept the country was “Hope and Change” and “Change We Can Believe In.” It encapsulated the last year of President Bush and the urge for a simple change of leadership that many, even Republicans, wanted after eight years. That phrase, along with a horrible economic downturn, got Obama into the White House.

In 2009, the phrase came early in the year. Republicans were ready to help President Obama and willing to work in the spirit of bipartisanship to get much of Obama’s agenda through Congress. One man with a microphone spoke up and in four words summed up the Republican approach to the new Obama presidency – “I HOPE HE FAILS!!!”

That phrase, uttered by Rush Limbaugh on January 16, 2009 (four days before Obama’s inauguration) was the rallying call for many on the Right who were about ready to give up. Today, Obama’s stimulus plan got through barely but everything else grind to a halt. Health Care Reform is dead in conference after both houses of Congress passed their vastly different versions. The tea party movement has arisen to oppose Obama’s agenda.

In Obama’s first year in office, Virginia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, all “Blue” states, have elected Republicans officials. This is the start of an anti-incumbent and anti-Democratic Party wave that is coming in like a tsunami and will wipe out Democrats in 2010. Minority Leaders Boehner and McConnell will become Speaker Boehner and Majority Leader McConnell by this time next year. It's 1994 all over again!!