Everyone's Freaking Out About the GOP

Everyone knew it was coming, but that doesn't make it any less petrifying for liberals. After polls and pundits predicted it for months, the GOP has indeed taken the Senate in the 2014 midterm elections, getting the necessary number of seats to snag it from Democrats. It's a less-than-ideal situation for both our liberal president in office, Barack Obama, and for anyone hoping to see an effective Congress. After all, with the GOP controlling both Senate and the House of Representatives, it makes it all too easy for the party to block any legislation proposed by the Obama administration. (Not to mention the fact that Obama might actually be forced into using veto power with bills proposed by the red Congress — an unfamiliar action for the standing president, considering he's vetoed the fewest bills, just two, since James Garfield was in office for one year.)

So what can we expect in Congress? Some pundits have pointed to the 1994 Republican Revolution as an example, since it was the last time a Democratic president was in office when the GOP took control of Congress. Though the presidential administration and Congress eventually began to work together following a shutdown, Americans were forced to watch a government in gridlock. And that's almost the best-case scenario when it comes to a GOP-led Congress — should it actually succeed in pushing forward legislation, it could sponsor bills that, say, curb women's reproductive rights, or block appointments to federal or even the Supreme Court. (RBG, don't leave us anytime soon, okay?)

And based on Internet chatter following the results of the Senate, that gridlock is leaking into the American consciousness. Some are relieved to see a change in Congress, while others are fearing for our future — and for Democrats come 2016.

The Liberals

The Conservatives

The Indifferent

Looks like we won't be getting along anytime soon.