DAVE ROSS

Well that didn’t take as long as we thought

Nov 7, 2012, 8:13 AM | Updated: 9:36 am

Election night certainly didn’t go as some of our most beloved pundits predicted. (AP Photo/f...

Election night certainly didn't go as some of our most beloved pundits predicted. (AP Photo/file)

(AP Photo/file)

Election night certainly didn’t go as some of our most beloved pundits predicted.

“My intellectual analysis of this, factoring everything I see, plus the polling data, not even close, 300 plus electoral votes for Romney,” said Rush Limbaugh.

“My personal guess is you’ll see a Romney landslide, 300 electoral votes plus, and we may come very close to capturing control of the Senate in that context,” said Newt Gingrich.

Of course Rush and Newt weren’t troubling themselves with actual analysis. But even Karl Rove, who does do actual analysis, talks about charging into battle without body armor! He goes on Fox and challenges his own network’s call.

“No, I don’t,” he said.

Megyn Kelly goes into the back room to check with the numbers guys, who say, ‘no, there’s no mistake,’ but Rove remembers Florida in 2000.

“We’ve got to be careful about calling things when we have like 991 votes separating the two candidates and a quarter of the vote left to count,” said Rove.

But as it turns out, Fox’s numbers guys were right, and the New York Times numbers guy Nate Silver was right, and that’s scary.

Numbers guys are young and smart, and they may be accurate, but they are inherently boring — and if this spells the end of uninformed cheerleader commentary; if pom-pom punditry is dead — there’s gonna be a lot of time to fill.

I guess we can still fight over what’s the real America — Norman Rockwell’s America, or the America that re-elected Barack Obama. Except with the popular vote being pretty much tied, it turns out that the new real America must be just as real as the old real America.

Dave's Commentary

Dave Ross on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM
  • listen to dave rossTune in to KIRO Newsradio weekdays at 5am for Dave Ross on Seattle's Morning News.

Dave Ross

car culture...

Dave Ross

Ross: Are we killing car culture? Or is car culture killing the US?

I don’t think the question is whether we're going to "kill" our car culture. The real question is can we stop our car culture from killing the U.S.?

3 days ago

drivers data insurance...

Dave Ross

Ross: As cars release driving data to insurance, is your driving my business?

Every move you make, every swerve you take, every lane change you fake – someone’s watching you. Do drivers have a right to keep driving data private?

10 days ago

rent control...

Dave Ross

Ross: Rent control was never the answer in Wash.

The rent control bill died in the Washington State Legislature this week, even though Democrats control both houses.

30 days ago

end of democracy...

Dave Ross

Ross: Conservative activist earns applause for pledging an ‘end of Democracy’

The theme from Jack Posobiec's speech is that Jan. 6 was a righteous attack not on democracy, but on those who threaten democracy.

1 month ago

Image: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colorado, is seen on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2023. (Photo: Alex Brand...

Dave Ross

Ross: Voters can help cull bad politicians from the herd early

Let's remember that just about every occupant of a higher office once occupied a lower office, and was put there by us, Dave Ross says.

1 month ago

Super Bowl celebration...

Dave Ross

Ross: The NFL does it again

The NFL once again put on a show that was able to keep me tuned in for four hours even though I had no stake in either team.

1 month ago

Well that didn’t take as long as we thought