In 2008, as America was sliding into the deepest economic slump since the Great Depression, President Barack Obama convinced voters that the compelling emotion of the campaign should be hope.<\/p>\n
But reading conservative and liberal journals over the last couple of weeks, I’m convinced that two very different emotions will shape the outcome of 2010’s mid-terms:\u00a0 anger and impatience.<\/p>\n
Anger is pushing the Republican narrative, and it’s been a double-edged sword.<\/p>\n
Tea party fury is energizing the GOP base, but it has also catapulted some long-shot candidates into prominence, likely scotching some easy wins.<\/p>\n
The Republican establishment is nervous — a lot of their favored candidates have already been toppled — and there is a risk that average voters could be turned off by the revolutionary rhetoric.<\/p>\n
On the other end of the political spectrum we find a viral level of impatience, exemplified by Velma Hart’s scolding of Pres. Obama at a public forum broadcast by CNBC this week.<\/p>\n
She described herself as “exhausted” with defending Obama and said her faith in his policies was waning.\u00a0 “And I’m waiting, sir, I’m waiting.”<\/p>\n
Franklin Roosevelt’s base stuck with him for more than half a decade during the Depression, despite far more crushing economic conditions.<\/p>\n
But less than two years into his first term, Pres. Obama has failed to craft a narrative that satisfies the tens of millions of people who lifted him to power.<\/p>\n
If enough members of the Democrats’ liberal base — particularly African Americans — agree with Hart and decide to sit this one out, 2010 will be a landslide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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