Reading a new poll put out jointly by the Economist and YouGov, one of the largest online polling consultancies in the world, I found some interesting data.
One of the premises of the New Republicans is that the GOP is loosing -- quickly -- the young voters. Since party identifications tend to change glacially, this is big news.
These polling data clearly show the strongest, most vehement hatred of Bush is coming from women voters, 18-25. In just about every catergory, even of Bush supporters, the group most likely to find Bush too conservative is the young voter.
While the New Republicans are not advocating a party-wide shift in favour of whatever the youngest (and presumably most ignorant) members of the party want, we are advocating a less rigid policy on social issues (designed, in our opinion to capture and keep the Christian Right voters happy).
It is my personal opinion that the Christian Right has no choice but to vote for the Right because the Democrats will always be to their left and the Christian Righties don't have enough votes to carry the nation.
If the youth are being lost to safeguard the votes of people already bound to you, then what is the party's future?
The road to success is simple: drop opposition to popular causes like stem cell research and most types of abortion. Be strong in dealing with terrorists without eliminating the concept of civil liberties. Reduce the size of government. Tax less. Govern better. Pay attention to infrastructure (a typical democratic idea, but who is happy with our streets?). And finally, stand up to Israel when needed. We don't have to agree with everything they say (especially when they take our development aid monies, but refuse to stop building new settlements).
These changes take away vast amounts of animus against the party. While they are not enough to satisfy everyone, they move us closer to the principled center and away from a mythical utopia of moral citizens and foreign friends.
Economist.com
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Well, this doesn't surprise me in the least. I have been operating in Republian political circles for several years now and I rarely meet a Republican who would meet Linda Ronstadt's expectations. If they're under 35, they are generally socially libertarian, economically conservative, and see National Security as the primary concern of government (followed by getting the budget under control).
Now, occasionally I meet the young born-again with an Allen Keyes for President sticker on their car and scheduled weekly Bible studies on their calendars. God bless them. You can't help but like 'em. It's like those mormon commercials that make everyone feel good and neighborly. I don't mind them in my neighborhood at all, but in Congress they can be a pain. I think the young ones know, however, that their numbers are dwindling.
Of course, I am constantly around liberally (in both the classical and modern sense) educated people who spend a great deal of time thinking about politics and policy. I could be wrong, but I also see the youth of the right moving towards the morally-ambivalent center.
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