Breakfast in DC

On this President's Day I was having breakfast with my family in Washington DC and happened to overhear a couple of guys talking at the counter in Starbucks.  One guy was chuckling to the other about a news article on his PDA about a Republican strategist cautioning Republicans about taking too many budget related drastic measures or 1996 could happen all over again.  First of all, it was immediately clear that these two gentlemen were liberals.  Secondly, I get concerned when I hear about a Republican strategist cautioning his fellow Republicans against following campaign promises.  Thirdly, do liberals still think the November mid-term elections outcome was the result of a communication failure?  Didn't several poll results indicate that voters overwhelmingly supported fiscal responsibility?