FOCUS: NY-23rd

Yes, we got trounced in Virginia.

Yes, our incumbent got taken down in New Jersey.

But, fear not my fellow Progressives! These meant nothing.

As you may recall, I told you that Creigh Deeds, the Democrat in Virginia, was not a Progressive. He wasn't even a centrist Democrat. The man was a Rahm Emanuel Democrat. What do I mean by that title? Simply put, he was the type of Democrat only Rahm would recruit to run for Congress. Put it more bluntly: the guy was a DINO (That's right, Republicans! We can be clever too!) in that he was a Democrat, in name only. Deeds was pro-death penalty, pro-all-guns-rights, pro-war, pro-Conservative.

Governor Corzine's departure is something that we have needed for a while. He was unsympathetic to the concerns of his people. The Republican win in New Jersey is not at all a mandate to roll back all of the Progressive policies in New Jersey; rather, it is the People of New Jersey's way of rejecting the corruption and backwardness of the Corzine Administration.

The real way of showing where the People of America are is to look at the 23rd District of New York. This area was highly Republican-- the last time a Democrat won the district was 100 years ago-- and, two nights ago, it was decided for the Democrat. This Democrat is not Creigh Deeds. He isn't a Progressive's dream, either. But, the man who won this region, Representative-elect Bill Owens, is unequivocally supportive of the Middle Class, pro-health care reform, and pro-education. Simply put, Owens is the Progressive for that area, if not a Progressive through-and-through.

Think of that for a second. The exit polls in both New Jersey and Virginia, which accurately predicted the election results in both states, showed massive support for health care reform with a public option that was open to everyone. A robust public option. The Democrat's plan. The People of New York's 23rd showed their support for it in putting Owens into the House seat.

Don't listen to the pundits. It's not about a Republican regeneration. The elections were simply more people, angry with the status quo and in need of real change.