My friend JMH composed this and agreed to let me share it with at readers:

The Five Stages of Democratic Grief

Pre-mortems: 
1. Prep the battlefield. Winning isn't everything, you know! 
2. Move the goal posts (or baselines). If Republicans don't win bullet-proof margins, they're losers!

Post-Election:
3. Brief spasm of self-reflection, also known as self-exoneration, in which blame shifting is rapidly externalized. 
4. Passive-aggressive amnesia, including but not limited to: 

a) That's the price we pay for being better people than those guttersnipes! 
b) Unless Dems are actually arrested for voter fraud, Republicans rigged the machines!
c) Republicans are clearly hoist on their own ugly petards!

5. New normal, same as the old normal. Everyone knows that Democrats have been victimized, yet again, by the Vast [insert slurs] Right Wing Conspiracy, but we will fight on in the name of the stupid voters they've duped.