Originally posted on 09/06/2012:

The difference between 2010 and 1994 is in 1994 the Republicans didn't make making Clinton a one-termer their one and only goal and priority. They had their goals, good bad or indifferent, and were willing to work with Clinton in compromise to achieve some of their goals and some of his goals and meet and work on things they could do in agreement. The Republicans in congress of the last 4 years did not take the same approach. Not even close. They decided right away that they would simply do whatever they thought what be worse for Obama and whatever might help make him a one-termer. As it was, voting against what he wanted on everything and compromising on nothing became the strategy du jour. If that meant making the economy worse or increasing the deficit or whatever, that's what they were gonna do and that's what they did.