This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Wednesday, November 7, 2012. I'm Caleb Brown.

What lessons should politicians take from yesterday's election?

Did all that spending from so-called outside groups really move the needle?

John Samples, director of the Cato Institute's Center for Representative Government comments. Something that jumps out at me with respect to the presidential election

specifically is how many fewer votes Mitt Romney got than John McCain four years ago.

It just seems like a very odd fact.

Well it has to do with the fact that in part, 2008

was the most participated in election since the 1960s. I mean it was a peak in terms of turnout.

So even though McCain you know ended up in 46% or so, as long as the turnout is big enough,

he's going to, there's going to be an issue with passing that with a smaller turnout.

I mean you do have to say that Romney ended up getting a higher percentage of the two-party vote,

I believe, although not all the votes are in and everything, but it looks like he's he's coming in toward 48

so that's going to be a couple percentage points better than McCain and he

held Obama much lower than McCain did of course.

Obama did much better among Latinos than he did in 2008.

Owing, I think probably some calculation has to do with his turn around on immigration

even though he is the president who has deported the most illegal immigrants

ever. Well yes with Obama on several counts,

the actual performance in particular areas

did not seem to matter.

And the other, I mean, McCain McCain had as you might recall had been involved in immigration reform in a variety of ways it broke down

But he had he'd give it given some signaling there I think but I have to say the

...