U.S. to GOP: It's not you ... it's me ... OK, it's you

(also posted in the Daily News' Politics blog)

First you've got Iraq going into the shitter, then your members are either resigning and going to jail -- or just resigning and not going to jail -- over ethical violations, and then you've got a guy getting cozy with Congressional pages -- and then in the days before the election, one of the conservative movement's most visible preachers turns out to have a thing for meth and men. It's enough to sour your base, not to mention send swing voters in the other direction.

Did I mention Iraq?

So it's no secret why the Democrats were able to take the House and very likely the Senate.

And the irony? As a conservative ex-Democrat, Sen. Joe Liberman -- thrown under the bus by his own party -- gets to have a pivotal, king-making swing vote in the upper house.

Then Donald Rumsfeld steps down as secretary of defense. There's your fall guy.

Sure, the GOP contention that the Democrats have no plan to govern is true. But voters didn't care so much about what the Democrats would do as they do about what the Republicans are doing.

It's going be an interesting two-year run-up to the 2008 elections, with Bush turning into Mr. Veto ... and a whole lot of investigations into Republican doings over the past few years.

Clearly the GOP will have to rethink it's base-based strategy and appeal once again to the center. And Democrats will have to tread carefully and take care of that same center, or risk squandering what they've gained. That means things like "prescription drug reform," but not "national health insurance." Not yet, anyway.

And in another bit of irony, this Congress will likely give President Bush an immigration bill -- one with border security, a guest-worker program and probably some form of amnesty -- that he'll be willing to sign.

Bottom line: George W. needs to call up Gov. Arnold and ask for tips on how to really work across the aisle for a change.