From Holden:

Don’t mention Red States and Blue States in my presence. Just don’t do it. It’s a stupid media construct based on the way they color coded their electoral maps during the 2000 election. Beyond that it means nothing.

Furthermore, it’s destructive. By buying into this meme you are consigning yourself to the minority in this country – forever. It should be the first rule of politics. “Never support the creation of an Us vs. Them mindset when Us are fewer than Them.”

Do you really want the 59 million people who voted for Bush/Cheney last week to identify themselves with a “Red State” team? Do you want to see “I’m a Proud Red Stater” bumper stickers on the rear of 59 million vehicles?

Instead, we need to identify the issues that are important to the majority of Americans, then own those issues. We’re already doing really well on health care. We understand that it is a huge concern for most people, and Democrats actually have some excellent plans to deal with this problem. Introduce John Kerry’s health care plan from this year’s campaign into the Senate for starters.

We can also make some headway by fighting against Big Government. The GOP is now the party of Big Government and we can capitalize on that, particularly as it relates to waste, inefficiency, and huge deficits. Stop fighting the last election and get back to work.