From the Daily Southtown:

War, corruption were keys to election; Dems be forewarned

November 10, 2006
By Dick Kay
"Mission accomplished!"

There is no better metaphor for Tuesday's election.

Voters saw no progress toward ending the war in Iraq, which is the
mission President Bush had already claimed was accomplished years ago.
What his failed mission accomplished was a voter revolt that gave
Democrats control of the Congress.

Now after six years of ignoring the Democrats and steamrolling
legislation through the Congress with a Republican majority, the
president says he is willing to work with the Democrats in a
bipartisan effort to keep the country moving forward.

He will be tested on that offer. He will have to agree to some
strategy to withdraw from Iraq at an appropriate time. He will have to
agree to changes in the "No Child Left Behind" act, agree to permit
more stem-cell research, agree to an increase in the minimum wage and
work with Congress on a sensible immigration law.

And that's just for starters.

President Bush came into office claiming to be a "uniter, not a
divider," but the political divisions only worsened. Swept into office
by voters weary of a divided nation, Democrats also will test the
president on that promise.

But this will be a test for Democrats, too. Can they make good on
their promises? Will power change the party? War was not the only
issue. Corruption loomed large in voters' minds. When there is such
massive political change, voters are filled with hope. But the
reservoir of hope is at a very low level. The first hint of corruption
on the Democratic side of the aisle will leave them equally vulnerable
to voter rejection.

The same holds true for Democrats in Illinois. They will soon control
every statewide constitutional office. This election demonstrates
voters demand action. It could be said that in Illinois the only thing
Democrats have to fear is Democrats themselves. Absolute control
brings absolute responsibility for successes and failures.

Illinois will suffer a huge loss when Rep. Dennis Hastert surrenders
the Speaker's chair. He has worked in a bipartisan effort with the
Illinois delegation and used his great influence to bring billions of
dollars in projects to the state and to the greater Chicago area in
particular.

That loss will be offset by U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel's and Sen. Barack
Obama's substantial gains in political influence for their work in
securing Democratic victories.

Finally, you might ask why, if corruption was a large issue on the
national scene, it did not play a role in the governor's race here? It
did. While some around Gov. Rod Blagojevich have been indicted and
there is an ongoing investigation of his administration, Blagojevich
has not been charged with any wrongdoing. While Judy Baar Topinka was
trying to make corruption an issue, a federal judge told the last
Republican governor, George Ryan, he is going to jail soon.

An obscene amount of money was spent in this campaign year, most of it
on negative advertising. In my opinion, we have to find a way to take
the money out of politics. Then we could truly say we had accomplished
a great mission.

Dick Kay is the former political editor for NBC-Channel 5. He retired
in June after 38 years with the Chicago television station.