Who really won?

The obvious answer would be that every Republican lost in the elections and every Democrat won. But that's not truly the case.

LOSER: Karl Rove. Sorry, the aura is gone. The shift in direction away from Rovian influence was evident by the selection of Michael Steele to head the RNC. Bad tactics couldn't be afforded in an election such as this, and Rumsfeld's departure, had it come before the election as a planned occurrence, would have saved a couple of House seats and probabl kept the Senate from flipping.

LOSER: Nancy Pelosi. But she's the new Speaker! How could she be a loser? Well, her limited time in the spotlight was enough to turn off many people. Now, imagine seeing the Shrieker of the House every night. Aside from California and Massachusetts, I don't really think too many people will grow fonder of her politics and agenda. Bad moves by her could have big effects on 2008, whereas is she does a good or even halfway decent job, a lot of other people will gladly steal the credit. No-win situation.

LOSER: George Allen. DUH. Thankfully, we are now spared a campaign in 2008 by a candidate who seems almost exactly the same as W.

LOSER: Hillary Clinton. Again, how is it a loss for her? Well, she is now a member of the majority party, like it or not, and she will be a lot more visible touting measures that will again be unpopular (remember universal healthcare?) Besides, this election almost signaled a rejection of the Clintonian philosophy, in conceding certain areas even before the election begins, an favor of a different strategy - which is why she's a loser and....

BIG WINNER: Howard Dean. I thought the 50-state strategy was a good idea, and one that would pay divideneds in 2008, 2010, 2012. Not many people expected returns of this magnitude this quickly. A lot of credit should go to Howard Dean for taking a high-risk/high-reward strategy - it took almost all of the funds in the Democrats' coffers, but it worked. Besides, the efforts of the last two years may very well play out in the future in his favor, should he attempt another Presidential run.

WINNER: John Boehner/John Shadegg. Whoever emerges as the new Mouse Minority Leader of these two is sure to have gotten the message that voters just sent - return to 1994, not 2004. Hopefully, it will be one of these two, and not Eric Cantor or (shudder) Roy Blunt.

WINNER: Veto pen. I'm hopeful it will be used more than one time in the next two years.

WINNER: Poker Players. One thing we can count on seeing in the first six months of the year is an exemption for online poker, so that financial transactions can go unobstructed. Eventually, a system of revenue will come into place, because dangling money in front of Democrats is quite easy to get their attention. As the PPA has called for regulation and taxation for quite a while, and several incoming House Committee Chairs are in favor of this direction, I am feeling much more positive about its eventual recognition.

LOSER: W. No detail required. I know it historically happens. But it could have been avoided, and we all know this to be true, so I'm not going to expound further.

LOSER: Average taxpayer. Basically, if you pay taxes at all, your taxes will increase. Sorry. Min are going up, yours are going up, your neighbor's are going up.

LOSER: John McCain. Guess what? The Dems have both houses. The media doesn't need you anymore, to show its bipartisanship, and will stop adoring your "maverick" stances around, oh January 4. Oh, and the majority of your party hates you for undermining forewign policy and campaign-finance regulation, i.e. the Incumbency-Protection Act.

WINNER: Mitt Romney. With Allen out of the way, he's pretty much the only one standing on the right side of the GOP Spectrum, and his governance of a decidedly liberal state compared to conservative viewpoints will give him a leg up over his more liberal competitors in the primary, McCain and Giuliani. He might be unopposed entirely on the right, dependent on the decision of.......

WINNER: Newt Gingrich. Newt left in 1999 with some bitterness at the direction of conservative House members and the progression fro "Contract with America" to "K Street Project". This loss will allow the party (I hope) to regain some sense of self and what its priorities should be, and given Newt has had a lot of questions before the election about running, it's possible he may do so with Allen out of the way and only Romney as competition on the right.

WINNER: Harry Reid & Pat Leahy. Happy friggin birthday. The Dems can blockade any judicial appointee that comes down the pike and not even let them out of committee. I'm almost positive Stevens steps down next year, to guarantee someone closer to his ilk gets his SCOTUS seat.

LOSER: Condi Rice. This election is a partial repudiation of our foreign policy adventures, and I'm pretty sure we can stop talking about any possibility of Condi for higher office now.

PUSH: Stock Markets. I'm surprised to see they haven't moved much since the election. I was expecting a 100-point swing on Wednesday, depending on the results. This prediction worked as well as all my others - market closed almost unchanged. Even within targets sectors as energy, pharmaceuticals, banking, etc., there was no significant change. The lesson....I'm an idiot.

That's about it on my thoughts right now.