Will Demographics Really Destroy the GOP?

RCP ^ | 02/11/2014 | Sean Trende

[SeekAndFind]

Last week, Peter Wehner wrote a piece in Commentary magazine laying out a collection of data regarding recent elections and demographic trends.  He was mostly content to let the data speak for themselves, save for a codicil to the piece arguing that something had to change: “Republican problems are not superficial, transient, or cyclical. The trends speak for themselves. The GOP therefore needs to articulate a governing vision and develop a governing agenda that can reach groups that have not traditionally been supportive of it.” His ultimate takeaway is that the GOP needs to substantially revise its platform, and make a move similar to that made by the New Democrats in 1992.

Anyone familiar with my writings knows I’m skeptical about such claims and the efficacy of such moves. While I’m not a pure economic determinist, I do think that elections are largely about fundamentals, such as the economy and the course of wars. Put differently, if Democrats had instead nominated Bill Clinton in 1988 and Michael Dukakis in 1992, we’d probably think of the New Democrats as failures and believe that ol’ time liberal religion represented the future of the Democratic Party.

This isn’t to say I’m unsympathetic with some of the goals that Wehner and other analysts urge the GOP to pursue -- both in terms of specific programs and broader issues of inclusivity and outreach.

But while I think it might well be the case that the GOP should adopt some changes, that doesn’t lead to the conclusion that they must.

[Da Coyote]

The GOP is doing a superb job of destroying itself.

I’ve pretty much written them off.

[basil]

I think the answer to the question in the title matters not a wit.

The Republican Party is hell-bent on destroying itself, IMO.

[TADSLOS]

Demographics, you say? ROFL.

[dfwgator]

Will Demographics Really Destroy the GOP?

Nevermind the GOP, what about the country?

[knarf]

The way the electorate thinks is what destroys a politician or a party.

Everything is geared towards making people think anything but American.

[snowrip]

Conservatism is - by its very nature - inclusive.

This “article” was written by someone who agrees with the RINO party: it’s more important to win elections and preserve careers than to defend America.

[Don Corleone]

“Republican problems are not superficial, transient, or cyclical. The trends speak for themselves. The GOP therefore needs to articulate a governing vision and develop a governing agenda that can reach groups that have not traditionally been supportive of it.” His ultimate takeaway is that the GOP needs to substantially revise its platform, and make a move similar to that made by the New Democrats in 1992.

Reads like the last paragraph of a rejected Masters Thesis.

[chris37]

No, their dishonesty, emptiness and corruption will.

[nascarnation]

With my daughter producing another grandchild, I spent a bit of time last week at one of the local maternity hospitals.
(not the one in the ‘hood)

Based on this very limited sample, not many future Republicans are being born.....

[Repeal The 17th]

Since the country encourages and tolerates legal and illegal immigration
form socialist and communist societies, it has committed demographic suicide.

[Lurking Libertarian]

Very good analysis. The full article is well-worth reading.

[stars & stripes forever]

If you notice, illegals as well as Democrats are relocating to conservative states. It is part of the ‘master plan’ for liberal dominance where there was none.

[skeeter]

Its simple - minorities in this country have for the most part been convinced that the GOP is the party of racist whites. Since our immigration system is set up to benefit third world immigrants if trend continue to GOP will become extinct.

There are two directions it can go to avoid this - one, become more like the Democrats, a big government we'll-wipe-your-fanny-for-you party & try to out pander them; or campaign to change the damn system from the corrupt one it has become to something closer to what it was supposed to be - what we were PROMISED it would be.

The latter would have the advantage of being widely popular with the electorate.

Of course we know which way the GOP will go.

[sickoflibs]

It’s looking pretty grim there and losing Asians in 2012 was a really bad sign.

[dadfly]

from the bio of this faux conservative: Peter Wehner is a Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. He writes widely on political, cultural, religious, and national-security issues. He has written for numerous publications—including the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times, Financial Times, the Weekly Standard, Commentary, and Time magazine—and contributes regularly to Commentary magazine’s blog “Contentions.” He has also appeared as a commentator on Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, and C-SPAN television... In 2011 Forbes magazine featured Mr. Wehner on a short list of conservatism’s leading “educators and practitioners of first principles.” He was described this way: “Author, commentator, problem solver, prolific, daily provider of concise, reasoned, artful analysis and argument; gentle giant of a thinker at the intersection of politics and policy.” In 2013 he was named as one of a handful of influential reform-minded conservatives The Washington Monthly and profiled in National Journal as one of the strategists and “policy wonks” focused on reforming the GOP.

[Oliviaforever]

• In the last two decades of Democratic dominance, 18 states and the District of Columbia have voted Democratic six out of six times. These currently have 242 electoral votes, which is quite close to the 270 needed to win the presidency. There are 13 states that have voted Republican in every election since 1992, but they total just 102 electoral votes.

That is a daunting an perplexing problem that must be fixed soon or all the Democrats will have to do is win 28 Electorial Votes to win every presidential election.

The options would be to make these 18 Blue States assign their Electoral Votes proportially or redistribute Electoral Votes is a manner by which these solid blue states would not have so much power.

[jjsheridan5]

As long as there are a significant number of Republican voters who believe in voting for the lesser-of-two-evils in the general election, the Republican party will never have a chance of attracting new voters. The sad irony is that these voters think they are smart, and believe that they are doing the only thing they can to stop or contain liberalism, when in fact their actions are a necessary prerequisite for unimpeded growth in the size and scope of government.

Supporting, in any way, the likes of McConnell, Cornyn, et. al, removes any possibility of a cohesive force opposed to liberalism, and as a result, does far more harm than not voting, or even voting democrat.

[Graewoulf]

Well said.

[Slyfox]

The GOP does not need to change its platform (before any of you say otherwise READ it first).

What the GOP is not doing is - it is not connecting with people who are pro-life, pro-business, pro-family, and pro-God like most of the Hispanics in our country, legal and illegal, and most of the other minorities.

These people are politically misinformed. Something that Ronald Reagan happened to be able to remedy in his day.

If Rove and all the GOPe hotshots really want to win in the next elections they need to out-shout the LSM who is telling the misguided dems a load of crap.

You don't scrap the truth by yanking out the planks ya don't like.

You shout from the rooftops the truth you have in your very own hands.

That is unless you don't want to.