re: #69 Dr Lizardo

What about 2014? If the GOP loses seats - not enough of them, mind you to become a Congressional minority party - but sees their lead whittled down significantly, what will occur then? A circular firing squad? A purge within the party, or will that necessarily have to wait until 2016?

No, it won’t be 2014. Barring something extraordinary, the Republicans will remain in control of the House then - and the hard right will remain strong if not dominant as well. The big driver there is the gerrymandering. Yeah, “both sides do it” but it’s heavily weighted to the Republican side. That’s going to give the Republicans a +10 to +16 advantage over what should be representative balance till at least the next census revision.

The other reason it won’t be 2014 is the spotlight. The presidency is a focused and singular position. It (obviously) exposes regional assumptions to national exposure for both good and bad. Congressional elections, despite being national news, are in reality just local affairs.