Republicans won the midterms. But they didn't win a mandate.

Winning a midterm congressional election against an unpopular, exhausted, lame-duck president is pretty much the easiest thing in national politics

Reagan
(Image credit: (Win McNamee/Getty Images))

On Tuesday, as everyone predicted, the Republican Party won a majority in the Senate. And since the GOP also controls the House, Republicans will have control of both houses of Congress beginning in January. As a conservative, I am obviously happy with this. But I am not that happy.

Why? Firstly, this new Congress means two more years of do-nothing Washington. Anything good that the Republican Congress will pass will be vetoed by the president. (That threat of a veto doesn't mean the GOP Senate shouldn't pass a good health-care plan.)

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Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry is a writer and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His writing has appeared at Forbes, The Atlantic, First Things, Commentary Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Federalist, Quartz, and other places. He lives in Paris with his beloved wife and daughter.