And a Few Thoughts About the Election

By James Kwak

Just about everything has been said already, but:

There was a lot of talk, and rightly so, about Barack Obama’s overwhelming victory among Latinos. There was little talk about Obama’s even more overwhelming victory among Asian-Americans, who are the fastest-growing demographic group in the country. For decades people have said that Asian-Americans are a natural Republican constituency. But they said that about Latinos, too.
In the broad sweep of history, it will be hard to see 2012 as a turning point, given its endorsement of the status quo. With one exception: it was the night that gay rights broke through. Besides Tammy Baldwin, besides victory in all four states (Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Washington), there was the roar of applause when Barack Obama said “gay or straight,” and even the Republican commentators talking about how their party had to get on the right side of the issue.
Last night, when the outcome was clear, David Brooks said that if Obama reached across the aisle, he could gain the support of 15 to 20 Republican senators—proving that he can smoothly transition from being unable to interpret polls to being unable to interpret election results.
Amid all the gratifying things about election night (with Elizabeth Warren at the top of the list), here are  few more: “Joe” the “Plumber” losing, the replacement of Joe Lieberman, Karl Rove and Donald Trump displaying their craziness.
And, of course, the final word must go to xkcd. Go math!