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Jim Webb: Why Reagan Dems Still Matter
RealClearPolitics ^ | November 8, 2010 | David Paul Kuhn

Posted on 11/08/2010 5:01:40 PM PST by neverdem

Jim Webb went to the White House last September. The Virginia senator was meeting with the president to discuss Guantanamo detainees. The conversation soon shifted to healthcare. "I told him this was going to be a disaster," Webb recalls...

--snip--

This independent problem returns Democrats to their white problem. Most non-aligned voters are white. White males constitute the plurality of independents. These are the Reagan Democrats. Webb does not see himself as their spokesman. But he is one of the few Democrats able to speak as one of them.

(Excerpt) Read more at realclearpolitics.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; Politics/Elections; US: District of Columbia
KEYWORDS: abortion; independents; reagandemocrats
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To: HarleyD

What you saw in this election were the “Reagan Democrats” moving towards the Republicans through the Tea Party movement.


I’m going to go out on a limb here and say America saw what conservative Texas was doing right, e.g., no RATS, and voted the same for their own state.

RATS have now been by their own actions defined in the dictionary as disease and death to any part of the United States they sink their fangs into.

Like Detroit.


41 posted on 11/08/2010 6:49:24 PM PST by txhurl (If we can shake Congress like a can of pennies, we can uproot voter fraud like a D-9.)
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To: txhurl
We HAVE to keep doing what the independents like, keep them voting. Not just for our own satisfaction and conscience, but to keep the indies with us.

Independents’ Day - Yes, Independent Voters Went Republican, And We Will Need To Keep Them

The first link has a range of 22 to 44 as the percent of independents in various states for the governor and senate races.

Republicans won the midterm elections. Now can they survive?

Americans' agenda is simple. In broad terms, they want the government to spur job growth, but not by subsidizing more government jobs with taxpayer dollars. They want Washington to balance the budget and reverse the growing influence of government on daily life. They want the government to encourage success, allow failure, punish those who break the law - and then get out of the way. And above all, they want politicians to follow through on their promises, even if that means tempering those promises in the first place.

They also show clear support for the following five ideas:

l (1) Balance the budget as quickly as possible through meaningful spending reductions, a hard spending cap and a constitutional amendment so that it never gets unbalanced again.

l (2) Eliminate all earmarks until the budget is balanced, then require a two-thirds vote by Congress for future earmark legislation.

l (3) Keep taxes down by requiring supermajorities for increases, and eventually enact tax reform with a simple, low, fair rate that drastically reduces the length of the IRS code.

l (4) Create a blue-ribbon task force that engages in a complete, line-by-line forensic audit of federal agencies and programs to end waste and reduce red tape and bureaucracy.

l (5) And require Congress to provide specific constitutional authorization for every bill it passes so that the government stays within the boundaries imagined by the founders.

One more thing: Voters want their representatives home in their districts and holding monthly town halls. The worst strategic mistake House Democrats made this year was canceling scores of public meetings, denying their constituents the chance to be heard. Hell hath no fury like a voter silenced, so the voters spoke in unison on Election Day.

I've found that each of these policies has at least 60 percent public support, so if you agree with most of them, it means you're in the American mainstream. It also means that - wait for it - you agree with the tea party.

It's been posted alredy. I linked directly the printer friendly version. The whole article is quite remarkable.

I think in the vast majority of the country that conservatives can take the majority of independents. In big cities and the two coasts, moderates may be the only candidates with any chance to win for now, IMHO.

42 posted on 11/08/2010 7:07:25 PM PST by neverdem (Xin loi minh oi)
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To: neverdem
The conversation soon shifted to healthcare. "I told him this was going to be a disaster," Webb recalls... ...

blah, blah, blah.... this guy is an effing liar. He voted FOR Obamacare, and if he ever thought it was a mistake he had EVERY opportunity to publicly say so. HE NEVER DID.

This is all about a Democrat looking at 2012 and fearing the wrath of the people. Be prepared to be bamboozled by Webb 'forgetting' all his liberal votes and becoming a one-year conservative.

Fools the people every time!

43 posted on 11/08/2010 8:47:11 PM PST by WOSG (OPERATION RESTORE AMERICAN FREEDOM - NOVEMBER, 2010 - DO YOUR PART!)
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To: Sonny M

He has zero chance of getting any Dem Prez nomination.

His only chance of surviving 2012 is having the liberals at the WashPost cover his butt and make him out to be mr conservative. This is all about 2012 re-election.


44 posted on 11/08/2010 8:49:34 PM PST by WOSG (OPERATION RESTORE AMERICAN FREEDOM - NOVEMBER, 2010 - DO YOUR PART!)
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To: 84rules

He will not be respresenting Virgina after 2012.

Hopefully he won’t.....after all the cheerleading about Reid and Boxer not getting their seats back, I am cautiously optimistic but won’t be making blanket statements as you did. We do this all the time.....”Murk won’t get more than 8 percent of the write in vote”, “Dino is going to win 100 percent”, “Oregon is going Republican”, “O’Donnell has this in the bag”. I never understood why we do this. I think saying “We hope.....” is more realistic.


45 posted on 11/08/2010 8:54:07 PM PST by napscoordinator
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To: WOSG
This is all about a Democrat looking at 2012 and fearing the wrath of the people. Be prepared to be bamboozled by Webb 'forgetting' all his liberal votes and becoming a one-year conservative.

Fools the people every time!

I posted the thread mainly for the author's comments about independents and Reagan rats. Webb made one comment about abortion that helped.

46 posted on 11/08/2010 9:36:58 PM PST by neverdem (Xin loi minh oi)
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To: WOSG
I'm not sure he thinks he even has a chance at re-election in 2012.

That said, I don't think he would win if he tried to get the nomination in for prez, but he would have an impact, which might be all he wants (or the VP slot from Biden).

He has an ego, he's unhappy, and he's on the irrelevant side now, that might be all the motivation the man needs to make an ass of himself.

47 posted on 11/08/2010 10:13:37 PM PST by Sonny M ("oderint dum metuant")
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To: HarleyD
There is no such thing as “Reagan Democrats” just as there is no such thing as “Blue Dog Democrats” or “Pro-Life Democrats”

Maybe not now, or as much, but Reagan Democrats certainly existed........Pat Buchanan has written extensively about them....

I think its safe to say, that the democrats are kicking them out of the party...

48 posted on 11/08/2010 10:18:29 PM PST by Sonny M ("oderint dum metuant")
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To: Frantzie

A vote for Harry Reid. Toss ‘em. Oh yeah ... and he sucks on immigration.


49 posted on 11/09/2010 2:50:37 AM PST by WilliamHouston
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To: neverdem
The Virginia senator was meeting with the president to discuss Guantanamo detainees. The conversation soon shifted to healthcare. "I told him this was going to be a disaster," Webb recalls.

I respect Webb, but I find that comment very strange. If he knew the bill was going such a disaster, whey did he go ahead and vote for it anyway?

50 posted on 11/09/2010 10:05:30 AM PST by curiosity
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To: curiosity
If he knew the bill was going such a disaster, whey did he go ahead and vote for it anyway?

I don't know, blackmail maybe? Didn't he or an aide get caught with Webb's handgun in or about the Capitol? Maybe charges were still pending, depending on Webb's voting behavior? It made the news in late March 2007.

51 posted on 11/09/2010 12:07:08 PM PST by neverdem (Xin loi minh oi)
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