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The Democratic Party got a well-deserved spanking in the midterm elections. There is no other way to say it, but it was self-inflicted on many levels. Still, the Republican Party cannot coddle right wing extremists and do nothing for the next two years. It won’t bode well for them in 2016. I won’t lie, I was stunned. Very stunned. I didn’t expect a clean sweep last night. President Obama got a heckuva reality check. He seems like a president without a party. I guess the Republicans rode the wave of public anger over the handling of the Ebola disease outbreak, VA hospital scandal, ISIS (ISIL) strategy or lack thereof, and several other issues. The Democratic candidates ran from Obama instead of crafting a message that accentuated his accomplishments — minimum wage, etc.

On another note, I have to ask, has the time come for black voters to form new alliances with the Grand Ole Party? Possibly. RNC chief Reince Priebus said he wants a more inclusive Republican Party. Well, black voters should hold them to task and demand more attention. For example, Sen. Rand Paul (even though he tried to rewrite civil rights during a speech at Howard University) is quite aware that the black vote should not be ignored by the party. Let’s hold him to task and not just vote for the Democratic Party just because. The black unemployment rate is still hovering in the double digits — 11 percent for September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Crime rates are still high in inner city areas for a myriad of reasons, mostly tied to the high unemployment rate among black males. Prison reform is sorely needed. So, what has the Democratic Party really done to help the black community?

I once considered myself a Democrat. Yeah, I’m saying it with a straight face, but I became an Independent during the 2008 presidential election. I vote for whoever will best meet my needs and shares similar centrist ideals. What I am saying is that I have voted Republican in the past, several times. It has never been about race for me, but about who can deliver the things I hold true.

A very unhappy electorate spoke Tuesday night and we have to accept what they said. That’s what makes this country great. That was a democracy at work. Now I am sure there will be folks who say there were voting irregularities and so on, but the fact remains, the Democrats got the mother of all shellacking last night and they deserved it.

Enter President Obama….

After the stunning defeat, President Obama isn’t going to back down from doing what he believes is best for America. That includes immigration reform. Many are expecting him to use executive action to bring about change. That may work in the short term, but it can be undone by the next president. The fact is, blustering aside, President Obama has to find a way to work with the Republicans. Bill Clinton did it in his second term.

Obama will strike a tone of compromise and accountability during his public remarks Wednesday, promising to work with Republicans who are interested in working with him. He’s gone almost two years without a major legislative achievement, leaving him “very willing” to start cutting deals, a senior administration official said, possibly on trade, corporate taxes and patent reform. Still, this posture isn’t much different than the one he’s projected for years.

At the same time, Obama won’t back down from using his administrative powers, including plans to issue an executive order on immigration that could be the most aggressive unilateral action of his presidency. He’ll adhere to a progressive agenda that, officials said, will keep the base excited, position his party to win back the Senate and hold the White House in 2016, and seal his legacy. And he will continue to use the bully pulpit to promote liberal issues, such as stemming climate change, that stand no chance of passing Congress on his watch but might under his successor.

Even though Sen. Mitch McConnell said he wanted to make Barack Obama a one-term president, as the new Senate Majority Leader, he and the rest of the party will have show they can govern. That will include pursuing bipartisan deals. He can’t take the hard-line stance of Sen. Ted Cruz. He’s already striking a conciliatory tone:

Asked to imagine it was Wednesday morning and he wakes up majority leader—a position he’s aspired to, he says, since the 5th grade—McConnell strikes a conciliatory tone, saying he hopes to work with President Obama and Senate Democrats. He said there would be no shutdowns on his watch, despite the fact that he plans to use funding bills to force changes in Obama’s policies. Source: Time.com

So, yeah, the Democrats got routed last night, but I don’t believe all is lost. There’s strength in bipartisanship and now is the time for lawmakers to show they can actually work together instead of posturing all the time. So, maybe once you look beyond the craziness of some Republican lawmakers, there may actually be room for more black voters in the party.

This was cross-posted from The Hinterland Gazette.