Another Cycle, Another Trend
By Mitch Berg
A few years ago, as the ’08 campaign was heating up, up, you started seeing the stories, asking “are evangelicals leaving the GOP? The story was like so many – an idea looking for a trend – that fairly screamed “someone’s trolling to get ahead of a curve that doesn’t exist yet”. (The answer, by the way, was “no – evangelicals just stay home if they’re not thrilled with their choices.
So I’m not sure what to think of this story, a CNN poll showing Democrats joining the Tea Parties:
They are not typical Tea Party activists: A woman who voted for President Obama and believes he’s a “phenomenal speaker.” Another who said she was a “knee-jerk, bleeding heart liberal.”
These two women are not alone.
Some Americans who say they have been sympathetic to Democratic causes in the past — some even voted for Democratic candidates — are angry with President Obama and his party. They say they are now supporting the Tea Party — a movement that champions less government, lower taxes and the defeat of Democrats even though it’s not formally aligned with the Republican Party.
I spoke at the Constitution Day Tea Party last year, and I took a very informal poll of my own; I asked people to give a shout and wave their arms when I mentioned their label of choice. There was a small film of people who responded to “Democrat”.
The CNN poll, wonder of wonders, found…more or less the same thing:
To be sure, the number of Democrats in the Tea Party movement is small. A recent CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll shows that while 96 percent of Tea Party activists identify themselves as either Republican or Independent, only 4 percent say they are Democrats.
On the other hand, you can see where some Democrats – especially the blue-collar ones that stand to be damaged the most by Obama’s plans – might find some resonance; their parents did the same thirty years ago when Jimmy Carter presented them with the same dismal future.
Some of these disgruntled voters are taking part in the current Tea Party Express tour. The tour began in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s hometown of Searchlight, Nevada, on March 28 and is making 44 stops across the nation. It ends in Washington on tax day — April 15.+
Which is where I’ll be – at the State Capitol for the Minnesota Tea Party, after work on April 15!
See you there!
April 5th, 2010 at 9:51 am
I know a lot of Democrats who are Democrats because, “my father was a Democrat, and my grandpa was a Democrat”. So they feel the Republicans are the enemy, and therefore they must always oppose them. So perhaps if a movement shows up the holds Republican limited-gov’t ideas, then these people can support it, without having any connection to the enemy party.
April 5th, 2010 at 9:58 am
This is not surprising. Like Mitch, I was a Democrat at one point. I voted for Jimmy Carter twice. Ronald Reagan changed my POV, and I voted for him in ’84. Though I did flirt with some fringe parties, I have never voted Democrat since then.
Like Chuck, I hope the Republicans strongly promote limited government this time around. I think they will find an enthusiastic response.
April 5th, 2010 at 10:09 am
Well duh! Obviously those are the racist Democrats joining the Tea Party movement. Sheesh.
But on a serious note, my mother voted Democrat her whole life. Prior to Obama she had cast one solitary Republican vote in her life (Reagan’s second term). I asked her why and she explained how her parents were Democrats and her father thought FDR pretty much walked on water. Scary as it may sound, she just kept voting for the little letters next to someone’s name instead of actually taking the time to see what they were about.
But what is strange about this is that I’ve voted overwhelmingly for conservative candidates my entire life. The opposite of my mother. Granted, I grew up at a time where my very first vote ever was for Ronald Reagan, so I saw things from a different perspective.
I had a roommate years ago who was a diehard Democrat. We used to discuss politics all the time (Clinton’s impeachment was underway) and I asked him why he always voted Democrat and his answer really surprised me. He told me, “it’s a cultural thing”. (He’s Black {not African American, his words}) I tried to wrap my head around his answer and he tried to explain it, but it just never made sense to me. Because you have a particular skin tone, you’re supposed to vote a certain way? And this is a smart guy. A (seemingly) independent guy.
But, I think in the end, most rational people who truly look at issues instead of party vote their conscience. And that’s what is happening with some of the Democrats who embrace the Tea Party movement. (I’m sure you could probably find Republicans who are embracing Organizing for America)
April 5th, 2010 at 10:23 am
Yes! Gone are the day of “Group Think” and people who move in clusters! Folks, THINK FOR YOURSELF! Your country will be better off for it! Get involved! If we ALL spent 3 hours a month on civic participation it would send a message to those folks misappropriating our tax dollars!