“The Very Separate World of Conservative Republicans”
October 19, 2009Jon Brooks Comments OffDemocracy Corps, the research organization formed by Democratic consultants James Carville and Stanley Greenberg, released a report on Friday called “The Very Separate World of Conservative Republicans.” This research was based on focus groups of “white, ‘strong’ or ‘weak’ Republicans who ideologically self-identify as conservative or moderate and who voted for John McCain AND the Republican congressional candidate in 2008.”
You can, of course, choose to take any research from an organization founded by two highly partisan political operatives such as Carville and Greenberg with a grain of salt. But what may be more interesting than the report itself is the online embrace of its conclusions by at least some in the political demographic the report claims to analyze.
First, from the report’s “overview” section:
…these conservative Republican voters believe Obama is deliberately and ruthlessly advancing a ‘secret agenda’ to bankrupt our country and dramatically expand government control over all aspects of our daily lives. They view this effort in sweeping terms, and cast a successful Obama presidency as the destruction of the United States as it was conceived by our founders and developed over the past 200 years. This concern combines with a profound sense of collective identity. They readily identify themselves as a minority in this country – a minority whose values are mocked and attacked by a liberal media and class of elites. They also believe they possess a level of knowledge and understanding when it comes to politics and current events, one gained from a rejection of the mainstream media and an embrace of conservative media and pundits such as Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh, which sets them apart even more.
…it was evident in our focus group discussions that the divide between conservative Republicans and even the most conservative-leaning independents remains very, very wide. Independents harbor doubts about Obama’s health care reform but are desperate to see some version of health care reform pass this year; the conservative Republicans view any health care reform as a victory for Obama and are militantly opposed. The language they use further reflects this divide. Conservative Republicans fully embrace the ‘socialism’ attacks on Obama and believe it is the best, most accurate way to describe him and his agenda. Independents largely dismiss these attacks as partisan rhetoric detracting from a legitimate debate about what many of them do see as excessive government control and spending.
This thread on Free Republic, which describes itself as an “online gathering place for independent, grass-roots conservatism on the web,” shows that many conservatives aren’t running away from this analysis by someone they loathe.
From the site’s comments section:
Initial post,extracting from the report:
“First and foremost, these conservative Republican voters believe Obama is deliberately and ruthlessly advancing a ‘secret agenda’ to bankrupt our country and dramatically expand government control over all aspects of our daily lives. They view this effort in sweeping terms, and cast a successful Obama presidency as the destruction of the United States as it was conceived by our founders and developed over the past 200 years.”
Responses:
For once, you’re absolutely correct, Carville.
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Yep! That is EXACTLY what I believe is happening right before our eyes!
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that pretty much sums it up folks…….
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I give up. What’s secret about it?
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It’s very public, the whole thing is hidden in plain sight.
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Yeah, but I bet there are a few individuals who read this first line and said, “I never thought about it that way, maybe those kooky conservatives are on to something.”I think Carville was stupid to make his statement so succinctly.
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Very good and interesting piece. Probably the best article I have ever read by the partisan lying POS fork-tongued snakehead.
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I don’t think it’s a ‘segret agenda’ at all. He’s very open about how he wants America to be a Socialist nation like East Germany was, with children and neighbors turning in those who do not hold Government in the highest esteem, a Nation who will brook no allegiance to anything but itself, including religion, familial ties, or financial obligation.
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Although skewed by his ideology, this was a surprisingly perceptive article by Carville…I truly believe that more Americans support the smaller government idea than bigger government, especially if they aren’t allowed to hem and haw about both sides having good ideas….(We need to ) get a good, well spoken, personable spokesman for our side. Not a wishy-washy compromiser (McCain, Dole), but someone more like Reagan. That spokesman must not come off as a haranguer, as much as many Freepers would love that. That politically less aware center needs to be taught without being shouted at about their political (or moral) sins like a preacher on a college quad.
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I’m no fan of Snakehead, but I didn’t see anything with which to disagree in this analysis. I think it accurately describes what might be called the GOP-FreeRepublic Split.
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The report’s “Analysis” section states that two out of every three Republicans fit this conservative profile. It also says that the intense conservative dislike of Obama is not a response to the president’s race, but to his policies and methods.
Again, make of it what you will…
