a grand old party riding a wave of voter discontent. republicans capture control of the house racking up sweeping and historic gains. >> let me just say this, it's clear tonight who the winners really are and that's the american people. >> but, democrats retain control of the senate, with the senate majority leader fending off a vicious tea party challenge. >> you made possible what many called impossible. this is the "cbs morning news" for wednesday, november 3rd, 2010. good morning, everybody. thanks for joining us. i'm betty nguyen. frustrated and frightened american voters handed democrats

and president obama's agenda a stunning defeat. in two years feelings of hope and change were replaced by anger and disillusionenment. republicans seized control of the house while democrats barely retain control of the senate. some of the most powerful democratic members were defeated. when all is said and done, republicans will have picked up at least 58 seats in the house. their biggest house gains since 1938. ohio's john boehner in line to replace nancy pelosi as speaker says the people's voice has been heard. >> the people's priorities will be our priorities. and the people's agenda will be our agenda. this is our pledge to america, and this is our pledge to you. >> early this morning, president obama called boehner to offer congratulations. boehner said he and the president agreed to work together. as we mentioned democrats were barely able to retain control in the senate.

republicans won senate seats from democrats in pennsylvania, wisconsin, arkansas, north dakota, and indiana. narrowing the democratic majority but failing to win control. in the highly watched nevada race, senate majority leader harry reid defeated tea party challengerharron angle. in california, democrat barbara boxer held off a strong challenge from former hewlett-packard ceo carly fiorina. in pennsylvania, republican pat toomey beat democrat joe sestak in an expensive and bitter race. sestak ousted arlen specter in the primary. in illinois, republican mark kirk defeated democrat alexi giannoulias to win the seat formerly held by the president. but west virginia democrat joe manchin beat republican millionaire john raese. in a seat formerly held by robert byrd. in florida, rubio easily won a three-way race, but another tea party candidate lost, christine o'donnell who won a stunning

primary victory lost to democrat chris coons. the republican gains means president obama will have to deal with a far more conservative congress, complicating his ability to aen act legislation randall pinkston is in washington with more on in. good morning, randall. >> reporter: good morning, betty. a big night for republicans and as you indicated, a huge defeat for president obama and the democrats who now face a new reality when congress convenes in january. the man set to become the next speaker of the house is promising change in washington. >> reforming the way congress works and giving the government back to the american people. >> reporter: voters, frustrated with the sluggish economy handed republicans control of the house tuesday night. the gop failed to capture the senate, but made some big gains. among them, president obama's old senate seat in illinois. >> we are 800 miles from any

ocean but a tsunami just hit the heartland. >> reporter: democrats hung on to their majority in the senate by keeping seats in west virginia and california. they also pulled off a victory in nevada, where senate majority leader harry reid fended off tea party favorite sharron angle. >> this race has been called but the fight is far from over. >> reporter: but the shift in power in congress means president obama will have a tougher time than ever pushing through his agenda. republicans who won with tea party support are promising to push their own agenda. >> our nation is headed in the wrong direction and both parties are to blame. >> reporter: tea party favorite marco rubio won florida's national seat while rand paul coasted to victory in kentucky, both originally considered long shots but won over voters with their washington outsider/antitax campaigns. >> we've come to take our government back! >> reporter: president obama already called republican leaders to try to bridge the gap, hoping to accomplish as much as possible before he comes up for re-election in 2012.

but before the rebuilding begins with a new congress, the current congress remains in office, speaker pelosi remains in power. a lame duck congress? we'll see what, if anything, they do by year's end. back to you, betty. >> we will be watching, randall pinkston in washington for us, thank you, randall. joining us with more is a columnist and analyst for salon dot com. good morning, steve. >> good morning. >> a big night for republicans pretty much what was expected. what does this say about the mood of the country? >> i think it says what we've talked about all year when you have unemployment as high as it is and economic anxiety as high as it is, the voters really are just looking to deliver a message to whoever's in power. you look right now the democrats control the white house, they controlled the massive majorities in the house before tonight and a sizable majority in the senate before tonight i think you look at sort of the swing voters, the people that in one election will vote

republican another voting democrat i think overwhelmingly and clearly in the mood for express frustration with the party in power. and so, up and down the ballot across the country you will see those voters moving from democrat two years ago to republicans tonight. and the result is something pretty seismic. >> was there any particular contest that surprised you the most? >> yeah, i would actually say it's the democratic win in nevada, harry reid surviving the senate majority leader. if you looked at his poll numbers within nevada, they were absolutely poisonous this year when you factor that political climate nationally i was just talking about there is really no reason a democratic incumbent with his moll numbers should have been able to survive. he just caught the break of the century, really, in drawing an opponent, sharron angle, who was just very polarizing, really rubbed a lot of voters the wrong way and sharron angle's presence in the race took what, you know, for the republicans should have been a referendum on reid and

the democrats and economy and turned it as much a referendum on sharron angle and gave harry reid his only chance of winning and lo and behold picks up a win six months ago nobody thought he would get. >> keeping this election in perspective. two years ago the republican party reportedly on life support and some were saying it might even take a generation to revive it. what happened last night? >> yeah, only a few years before -- two years before people said the democratic party was on life support. i don't know if you remember after the 2004 election the words of karl rove a permanent republican majority might have been elected and maybe a decade before that after the republican revolution in 1994, the republicans were also declared dead. i think we should declare a moratorium declaring one party or ideology dead. we have seen so many times in modern history that's been the case we've called the republicans out and democrats out and a few years later they bounce back. the reality like i said earlier in a two-party system we have in this country, when one party is

given sort of a great deal of power, when the economy goes bad, when there's a war a, when there's a scandal, anything that really upsets voters, makes them uneasy or anxious, when one party enjoys a lot of party they will lose this the next election simply because people want to express frustration. we saw that tonight. >> so, can you say that, in any way this was a referendum on president obama? >> it absolutely is to the extent democrats up and down the ballot lost seats tonight because the economy was in such rough shape. the message to president obama pretty obvious one if unemployment is as high in 2012 as it is now and economic anxiety as prevalent in 2012 as it is now it is tough seeing him win re-election unless, like with harry reid, he draws an opponent so polarizing republicans are not able to take advantage. but, if the climate is like this in 2012, horrible news for president obama. the flipside, if the climate is significantly improved and the

economy come back there is no reason he can't win election. >> speaking of the climate, what do you say about the results or what do they say the strength of the tea party and sarah palin? >> you know, it's a mixed bag because, you know, the tea party to me, when you say the term, what you're really talking about, i think, is the base of the republican party. sort of the energized conservative base that was kind of depressed in the immediate wake of the 2008 election, got energized to sort of fight barack obama. given the republican party plenty of energy. the flip side of that, though, the tea party has nominated candidates, some of whom are sort of unelectable. look at sharron angle in nevada, a direct party of the movement. christine o'donnell in delaware who lost tonight by 17 points is a tea party candidate. someone who never would have been nominated by the republican party if the tea party movement hadn't come along. so, they've given a lot of energy to the republican party but have also produced a lot of candidates who really can't take advantage of this climate. obviously, you know, great night for republicans, but, you know, if the tea party had been a little more flexible in some of

these primaries, it could have been better. they conceivably could have won the senate, i think, without the tea party. >> really? okay. thanks so much for your insight. we do appreciate it. >> sure. >> we'll be right back with more election 2010 coverage. this is the "cbs morning news." may not be getting the nutrition they need to keep their bodies strong. carnation instant breakfast essentials supplies the nutrients of a balanced breakfast to help build strong muscles and healthy bones. carnation instant breakfast essentials. good nutrition from the start. a body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain

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or trouble breathing. tell your doctor about your medical history and find an arthritis treatment that works for you. ask your doctor about celebrex. and, go to celebrex.com to learn more about how you can move toward relief. celebrex. for a body in motion. it doesn't get as much attention as t it doesn't get as much attention as the congressional races but 37 state governors were chosen in this election. democrats picked up at least two seats but at least 10 republicans are replacing democrats in key states. some of those governors may play important rolls in redrawing congressional districts and the next battle for the white house in 2012. sandra hughes reports. >> reporter: money did not buy victory for california republican meg whitman. >> tonight has not turned out quite as we had hoped. we've come up a little short. >> reporter: she spent $142 million of her personal fortune running for governor but lost to democrat jerry brown.

>> -- build for the future. and that's what it's all about. >> reporter: whitman, the former ceo of ebay hoped to have a political celebration tonight but voters went with experience over the political novice. jerry brown has already been california's governor back in the 1970s and '80s. in new york democrat cuomo claimed victory for the race for a job once held by his father but republicans made gains in at least eight states, including pennsylvania and ohio, two political battle grounds. in south carolina and early endorsement from sarah palin boosted her to victory, the state's first woman governor. a record 37 governorships were on the line. with more going republican, the gop will gain an edge in congressional redistricting and the 2012 presidential race. sandra hughes, cbs news, los angeles. and we'll be right back with a check of moneywatch and continuing election coverage.

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here's a here's a look at weather in some cities around the country. new york, sunny, 53. miami, partly cloudy, 83. chicago partly cloudy, 58. denver, sunny, 66. and it is a sunny 95 in los angeles. time now for a check of the national forecast. the latest satellite picture shows cloudy skies over the southeast with rain moving in

from the gulf of mexico. much of the country from the midwest to the west coast is seeing clear skies. and the great lakes region has a few clouds and showers moving eastward toward the northeast. later today, temperatures will continue warming up in the southwest and up the west coast. the northeast has cold air still sitting over the region. and the southeast is getting soaked again by a slow moving storm system that is moving to the east. on the "cbs moneywatch" stocks in asia got a boost this morning. ashley morrison is in new york with the latest on that. good morning, ashley. >> good morning, betty. asian markets climbed as election results in the u.s. continue to trickle in. hong kong's hang seng was higher most of the morning, and japan's nikkei index was closed. today wall street showed the fed's the latest plans to spark the economy. besides leaving interest rates near record lows, the central bank is expected to announce a $500 billion program to buy back government bonds. the idea is the injection of cash will loosen credit and

increase spending by both businesses and consumers. but, most economists don't believe the plan is big enough to do much good. stocks begin the day at six-month high after the market rallied tuesday. the dow jones, 64 points, the nasdaq gained 28. the republican takeover of the house was good news for wall street. historically, the s&p 3500 rallied an average of 15% in years when the president was a democrat and there was a republican majority in congress. with midterms out the of the way the fate of bush-era tax cuts will take center stage when congress recovers in a couple of weeks. president obama and the democrats tried before the election to extend cuts for families making less than $250,000 a year but allowed them to expire for families making more. republicans wanted all the cuts to be extended. if congress does nothing before january 1st, taxes go up for everybody. the nation's home ownership

rate remains at a ten-year low. the census bureau says nearly three million fewer americans now own their homes than just five years ago. analysts say the problem reflects the rise in foreclosures and weak demand for housing. and automakers roll out their october sales figures today. expected to be the best month for the industry since the government's cash for clunkers program 14 months ago, when people were given cash rebates for trading in their gas guzzlers. hopefully we'll get above news there, betty. >> always like positive news. ashley, thank you so much, joining us here in new york. when we return, another look at this morning's top stories and the new make-up of congress as the republicans sweep into power. [ female announcer ] with rheumatoid arthritis, there's the life you live... and the life you want to live. fortunately there's enbrel, the #1 most doctor-prescribed biologic medicine for ra. enbrel can help relieve pain, stiffness, fatigue, and stop joint damage. because enbrel suppresses your immune system, it may lower your ability to fight infections.

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and.. fans already lining up to welcome our new world series champions. we'll have a preview of the giant's big homecoming parade. join us for cbs 5 early edition ... beginning at five. ,,,, on the "cbs morning news," a look at today's weather. storms heading eastward through the gulf coast states. they could bring flooding rains an gusty winds. scattered showers linger over the great lakes and it's nothing but sunshine on the western half of the country.

as we've reported republicans are celebrating a big victory in the 2010 midterm elections. the party picked up more than enough seats to take control of the house. but, it fell short in the senate. joel brown has more. >> reporter: voters seeking change handed the gop control of the house. ohio republican john boehner is set to become the next speaker. >> it's clear tonight who the winners really are. that's the american people. >> reporter: that means nancy pelosi will be giving up the gavel. >> i thank all of you for what you have done. >> reporter: the party in power traditionally loses seats during a midterm election and exit polls show most voters disapprove of the job president obama is doing and are even more disillusioned with congress. >> it's been two years and, like, what do you have to show for it?

>> reporter: the tea party helped energize republican and independent voters frustrated with the excludingish economy and angry about growing deficits and president obama's far-reaching health care reform lawful. >> we've come to take our government back! >> reporter: tea party republican rand paul claimed an early victory in the kentucky senate race. and republicans picked up at least six other seats, including the one president obama held in illinois. >> we are 800 miles from any ocean, but a tsunami just hit the heartland. >> reporter: but the senate's most powerful democrat, harry reid, fended off a challenge from tea party favorite sharron angle and democrats will keep control of the senate. >> this race has been called but the fight is far from over. >> reporter: president obama has already made phone calls to the republican leaders saying he looks forward to working with them to get things done. joel brown, cbs news, washington. a reminder to get all the latest campaign 2010 election

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california votersai california voters said no to marijuana rejecting proposition 19 to legalize the use and sale of marijuana. the measure fell short of the 50% needed to make california the first state to legalize pot. candidates supported by the tea party had mixed results on election night. marco rubio of florida and rand paul of kentucky won their races and will join the senate but sharron angle lost her bid in nevada and christine o'donnell was badly beaten in delaware. the tea party movement didn't even exist two years ago but its effect on these elections is undeniable. byron pitts takes a closer look. >> reporter: edison, new jersey.

with caffeine in their veins, marching orders in hand, the tea party patriot foot soldiers spent the last few months here in search of converts. like all tea parties they're energized by goals of reduced federal spending, small government and free markets. in the last year, they have taken their message door to door in neighborhoods across the country. according to a cbs news exit poll 41% of voters support the tea party, which is actually not a party at all, rather a movement by people united by outrage over the rising federal debt and spending. >> thank you so much. >> reporter: a potent force is the tea party express, which promotes and funds conservative candidates boasting about 400,000 members nationwide. but the largest national tea party organization is the tea party patriots, with more than 2800 chapters across the country. >> yes, we will! >> reporter: several groups have sparked criticism using racist slurs and images in marchs around the country.

organizers say each group sets its own agenda. with no traditional top-down chain of command in the network, their call to action is simple. >> do something. no more couch potatoes in the tea party. that's passe. you know, everyone's up and they're doing something. >> this was something that just truly bubbled up. >> reporter: jenny beth martin co-founder of the tea party patriots. it is often, whether real or imagined, perceived as angry, the images you see from rallies across the country, the language in the signs, the level of passion in some of the attendees. >> yes, there's definitely an element of angry. we are not just angry and throwing stones. we're angry but saying this is what we want and stand for, as well. >> reporter: but regardless of who gets elected martin says their work has just begun. >> if they're not going to stand up for our core values we'll turn around two years from now in 2012 and find people who

will do it. >> reporter: that, they say, is a tea party promise. byron pitts, cbs news, new york. >> coming up later on "the early show," complete election night results and we will hear from the big winners, including nevada democratic senator harry reid, virginia republican congressman, eric cantor and south carolina republican senator jim demint. that's the "cbs morning news" for this wednesday. thanks for watching. i'm betty nguyen. thanks for watching. i'm betty nguyen. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

your realtime captioner is linda marie macdonald. caption colorado, l.l.c. good enough for government work. >> the democrats declare victory in li