“Whole Foods Republicans”
By Dennis Sanders:
Finally,something that describes who I am.
Let me explain. I’m a fairly well-educated guy that lives in the city, drive a Prius, gives to public radio and likes organic food. But if you think that his means I’m some kind of lefty liberal, you are so wrong. I don’t support the President’s health care plan (even though I do think there is room for reform). I am upset at his high spending habits. That should be something that would want to make the GOP go after people like me. But as Michael Petrilli notes, many in the Republican Party are not interested:
As less-educated seniors pass away and better-educated 20- and 30-somethings take their place in the electorate, this bloc will exert growing influence. And here’s the distressing news for the GOP: According to exit-poll data, a majority of college-educated voters (53%) pulled the lever for Mr. Obama in 2008—the first time a Democratic candidate has won this key segment since the 1970s.
Some in the GOP see this trend as an opportunity rather than a problem. Let the Democrats have the Starbucks set, goes the thinking, and we’ll grab working-class families. Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, for instance, wants to embrace “Sam’s Club” Republicans. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee pitched himself in 2008 as the guy who “looks like your co-worker, not your boss.” Even Mitt Romney blasted “Eastern elites.” And of course there’s Sarah Palin, whose entire brand is anti-intellectual.
Ross Douthat and Riehan Salam have written an entire book that tends to praise the “Sam’s Club” Republican while giving short shrift to more upscale Republicans, branding them as nothing more than Democrats in drag.
As Petrilli notes, the other the name for “Whole Foods Republicans” is moderate Republicans, those socially moderate-to-liberal, fiscally conservative Republicans. But these people have been tagged as “RINOs” and have been ignored by the GOP. And because the GOP has targeted such people as worthy of being purged, these “Whole Foods Republicans” aren’t showing a whole lotta love back at the GOP:
Do these Republican party leaders even appreciate how off-putting their comments are to someone who has at least an undergraduate college education, let alone an educated individual who can even think independently for themself? The Republican leaders of my youth were people like New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and Massachusetts U.S. Senator Edward Brooke. Those Republicans were generally socially moderate to liberal and fiscally conservative. Where have all of those Rockefeller Republicans gone? The above has made me very suspicious of the Republican Party.
I am equally suspicious, if not even more so, of the Democratic Party. Lifestyle choices aside, I view big government (and the often associated ineffective bloated bureaucracies) with great suspicion. “There’s no law that someone who enjoys organic food, rides his bike to work, or wants a diverse school for his kids must also believe that the federal government should take over the health-care system or waste money on thousands of social programs with no evidence of effectiveness. Nor do highly educated people have to agree that a strong national defense is harmful to the cause of peace and international cooperation.”
Perhaps this is why I remain an independent voter (and more and more college educated people like me are becoming so). What is wrong with having moderate to liberal views on social issues and being fiscally conservative at the same time?
Indeed, what is wrong with having moderate to liberal views on social issues and yet being fiscally moderate?
Right now, the GOP is withholding outreach towards more upscale folks for a few reasons: one, they are afraid of being painted as an “elitist” and then run out of the party; and two, because some still adhere to the Karl Rove school of electoral politics- rally the base and get just enough moderates to win narrowly. But the math shows the such a strategy will only last for so long. At somepoint, you will lose the moderates and the base is not big enough to bring victory.
In the end, three things will happen to the GOP in regards to “Whole Foods” voters: either they will reach out to them on their own, be forced to change by younger voters, or ignore them and become the modern “Know-Nothing” party that will be a regional party at best.
It’s up to the GOP leadership to decide.
About the Auther: Dennis Sanders is a pastor living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has worked on centrist Republican issues for years, including stints as President of the Minnesota chapter of Log Cabin Republicans (a gay/lesbian advocacy group) and Republicans for Environmental Protection. Dennis blogs at NeoMugwump and happily lives with his partner Daniel and serves two cats, Morris and Felix.
