One bit of political flotsam flushed away in last night’s blue deluge: U.S. Rep. Tom Feeney of Florida. 

Feeney, a three-term Republican from central Florida, has been an outspoken critic of Sarbanes-Oxley and specifically of applying its notorious Section 404 provisions to small companies. Well, he lost last night. Democrat Suzanne Kosmas drubbed him out of town by a 57-41 margin. 

Feeney co-sponsored legislation in 2007 to delay Section 404 for non-accelerated filers until the end of 2008. That bill went nowhere, and ultimately the SEC decided to extend the deadline—for Section 404(b), the requirement for an auditor’s attestation on internal controls—until the end of 2009 anyway. But Feeney had been a reliable voice against Section 404 for six years. Notably, he also opposed the Wall Street bailout legislation. Anyway, he’s unemployed.

On the bright side for Section 404 opponents, Scott Garrett did hold onto his House seat in northern New Jersey. He was the other co-sponsor in that Section 404 legislation, and presumably will remain on the House Financial Services Committee, where he waged his anti-SOX battles. 

One last bit of political errata this morning: One of the many rumors around Washington and here in Boston is that Sen. John Kerry might take a position in Barack Obama’s cabinet, possibly as secretary of state. Kerry is chairman of the Senate Small Business Committee and a reliable opponent of extending Section 404 to small companies—so if he leaves the Senate, someone else will need to pick up that mantle. But there’s more: When it seemed that Kerry might win the White House in 2004, Massachusetts changed its law so that a vacant Senate seat is filled by a special election within 120 days. At the time, one rumored candidate for replacement was U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, now chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. 

I don’t believe Kerry will be offered a position in the Obama Administration. And if he does receive an offer, and he accepts, I don’t believe Frank will give up what is now one of the most important committee chairmanships in Washington. But stranger things have happened.