A funny thing happened on the way to the revolution: A Democrat won the first race for a House seat since national health care reform was enacted.

That Ted Deutch was victorious in Tuesday's special election in Florida's 19th Congressional District is no great surprise. This is, after all, a liberal district (Broward and Palm Beach counties) that long has had Democratic representation in the House, including that of Rep. Robert Wexler, whose retirement opened the seat.

But Deutch didn't just beat Republican Ed Lynch; he trounced him — 62 percent to 35 percent in a district where only 49 percent of registered voters identify themselves as Democrats.

This race should have been much closer, or even a victory for the GOP candidate, especially at a time when Fox News, all the right-wing radio loudmouths and countless Tea Party kooks insist this year's congressional elections will be a mandate against Democratic-backed heath care reform and that Republicans will oust dozens of Democratic incumbents who supported the legislation.

Also worth noting is the largest demographic is the Florida 19th is senior citizens, the group that we've been told is most angry about health care reform. If that's the case, how did the Democrat manage to win Tuesday's election, and by such an overwhelming margin?

The truth is that America, as a whole, is not nearly as angry or as anti-Democrat/anti-Obama as a few sign-toting protesters who get a disproportionate amount of TV coverage would have us believe.

Yes, there's dissent in this country. Yes, there's anger in some circles. And yes, there's likely to be some backlash against the congressional majority in the November elections. But Tuesday's election in Florida, serving as the first indicator of things to come, suggests to me that the backlash will be far less dramatic than overly optimist conservatives expect.