In Obama's Re-Election, Voters Say No To 'severe' Conservatism

mcclatchydc.com — Thank goodness that’s over.The presidential campaign of 2012 did not in fact last long enough to be measured in geologic time, but poll-scarred and ad-weary voters can, perhaps, be forgiven for feeling as if it did. Barack Obama and his supporters will be, understandably, jubilant that his lease on that Pennsylvania Ave. mansion has been extended for four more years. But last night’s vote is also noteworthy for a reason only tangentially related to the fortunes of the incumbent president. One can argue — or maybe the better word is “hope” — that voters did more than re-elect Obama last night. They also repudiated the scorched earth extremism and acute cognitive dissonance that have come to characterize the Republican Party in recent years.

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