The Polls Confirm What Many Know About The Transformation Of The GOP

This article, by a professional who has headed the Gallop poll and the Pew poll,  describes what many of us sense about changes that have occurred in the Republican Party, and why they were not able to win a presidential election during a period of high unemployment.  The core of the GOP base is made of an alignment between social conservatives and the pro business wing of the party.  That wing represents 45% of the base.  It is 92% white, mostly male, and mostly protestants at least 50 years old.  Moreover the base has been hardened as result of three important factors. The GOP has been uncomfortable with changing demographics in America.  It is worried about the increasing number of Hispanics and it is less comfortable with racial integration than most Americans.  The election of President Obama increased the ideological resistance of this base to the presidency and to Washington.  The emergence of a conservative media, which caters to the concerns of the base, has also reinforced the fears and concerns of the GOP core.  Only 30% of the base regularly watches network news.  The majority of this base (54%) regularly watches Fox News which is always critical of President Obama and consistently reinforces conservative ideology.  There is nothing like this on the left. The left leaning cable news shows are not regularly watched by an audience that has a common ideological perspective.  Their audience gets its news from a variety of sources.  It is more open to a variety of viewpoints.  The article concludes by arguing that the GOP will not be able win general elections in the US as long as the party is dominated by its core constituency.  The implication is that it will be a minority party that has the power to maintain the gridlock that we see in Washington today.  The risk is that Americans will continue to lose faith in the ability of government to address the problems that we face.  We will not be able to deal with global warming, or with our economic and budget problems as long as this ideological core dominates the GOP