FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Democrats could be in for some serious bloodshed come the midterm elections - if yesterday's races in New Jersey and Virginia are any indication. Voters in both those states elected Republicans governor. The message was pretty clear: "It's the economy, stupid."
[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/images/11/04/art.va.gov.jpg caption="Republican Governor-elect Bob McDonnell of Virginia greeted the crowd at his victory party last night in Richmond. McDonnell beat out Democratic challenger Creigh Deeds."]
Exit polls showed more than 80 percent of voters in both states said they were worried about the direction of the economy in the next year; more than half said they were very worried.
Another trouble spot for Democrats - those independents who were a key to President Obama's White House victory last year broke big for the GOP yesterday. And, exit polls suggest Democrats had a hard time turning out their base - including the first-time minority voters and young people who voted for Obama last year.
Nevertheless, most voters in both Virginia and New Jersey said President Obama was not a factor in their vote. But if the administration can't do more to lessen the impact of this recession in the next year - yesterday's elections could be a sign of serious trouble in the midterms, when most governors, all of the House and a third of the Senate will be on the ballots.
Of course the White House is dismissing the New Jersey and Virginia losses as "two very local elections" that say nothing about the president's standing with the American people right now. They have to say that. President Obama campaigned for both these candidates.
Here’s my question to you: What can the Democrats do to keep from getting their noses bloodied in next year's midterm elections?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Durran writes:
This should be a wake up call to Democrats: stick together! Push the Democratic agenda (health care, Wall Street reform, closing Gitmo, etc.) because we might not get another chance. And the success of the agenda will cure the problem of "losing".
R. writes:
Democrats win if they stick to the promises in the campaign. The big insurance companies are bleeding the country. Go with health care reform with the public option or don't count on my vote!
Charlie writes:
They can move to the middle of the political spectrum, where the country resides and where they ran in '08.
Richard from Texas writes:
They better start delivering on their promises instead of blaming Bush. That is getting very old, very fast. If Obama did not want to have to clean up after Bush then he should not have run for president. Obama knew what he was up against when he ran. Obama and the Democrats need to take responsibility and stop blaming everyone else. What they inherited is exactly what they ran for.
Stephen from Virginia Beach writes:
What can they do to keep from taking a shot to their little congressional snouts? How about anything? Get something done for crying out loud. Especially that health care reform stuff.
Dave from Pennsylvania writes:
As an Independent, I think the Democrats had better stop trying to date a girl that doesn't even want to look at them. There ain't no way the Republicans will ever dance with the Democrats. There ain't gonna be no wedding ever! The Democrats had better find the nerve to do what needs to be done by themselves.