Anchor Struck

No matter how many more Yuletides I experience, none of them will top this one. I went to bed early Wednesday morning thanking a God I don’t truly believe in for answering prayers that I didn’t make. I’d been cautiously optimistic due to countless election letdowns, so the Democrats’ clobbering of the GOP was the most satisfying political event I’ve ever experienced.

And it’s still lighting me up. The Dems keep flipping seats. As of this typing, they have flipped 43 seats in the House for a commanding 253 – 156 lead. In the Senate, they’ve turned seven seats to take a 54 – 44 with just two undecided. One of those is the most interesting of the entire campaign.

In Mississippi, Democrat Scott Colom is leading Republican Cyndy Hyde-Smith. Pollsters and pundits give the edge to Colom. He came out of nowhere with precious little help from his party. Hyde-Smith grabbed headlines early in the running by telling hungry constituents who couldn’t afford beef that “there are so many proteins to pick from.” Besides putting her in the lead for this year’s Marie Antoinette Award, she handed Colom a calorie-rich set-up for an ad in which voters choose instead to pick another senator.

And Colom got another laugh at her expense when asked today about her declaring victory Tuesday night. He smiled and milked it perfectly, then said “Bless her heart.” I lived in Louisiana long enough to know that that expression is used more in condescension than in sympathy. It got a huge laugh.