Alas, no gridlock

Those of us who fear what a totally Democratic Washington might do must take our small comforts where we can:

Democrats broadened their control of Congress in Tuesday's elections, though in the Senate they fell short of the 60 votes needed for a filibuster-proof majority that would have given them almost unbridled power over legislation.

I hope conservatives don't make too big a deal about Senate Republicans still being able to filibuster. It's the nuclear weapon of debate tactics and can't be used on every issue -- the workings of Congress would grind to a halt. (Hmmmn, not a bad idea, come to think of it.) So it tends to be used selectively. On most issues, the country is still going to be at the mercy of the whims of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, and that's a truly scary thought.

That means for a little restraint, we probably have to look to . . . Barack Obama. If he's as smart as everybody says he is and wants to serve more than four years (and more than two with such big Democratic majorities in Congress), perhaps the pragmatic Obama will win out over Obama the ideologue. Yeah, and maybe my hair will grow back.

And before you bring it up, no, I wasn't that thrilled with the six years of Bush and a Republican Congress, either.