| In this time of political change, we are reminded of | | | | conservatives during the 1980's. They were able to |
| the early 60's harbinger of change; the | | | | wrest the white working class voting population from |
| implementation of the Nixon Southern Strategy. | | | | the Democratic party during Richard Nixon's campaign |
| There was a time back in the sixties, when the vast | | | | by subtle race baiting and class division. |
| majority of working people unabashedly called | | | | The infamous "Southern Strategy; created by Harry |
| themselves Democrats. Many Republicans and | | | | Dent created a long term division in the Democratic |
| Democrats called themselves Liberals. | | | | party. It divided the country into what we now |
| After thirty years of intense Conservative marketing, | | | | consider the Red and Blue states. Kevin Phillips |
| calling yourself a liberal seems to be as popular as | | | | accurately predicted that the Republican party would |
| calling yourself a communist. The man who predicted | | | | by the seventies, incorporate the conservative |
| the tectonic political shift was a scholarly man by the | | | | philosophy, organize the disaffected ethnic whites |
| name of Kevin Phillips. If you have some time to kill, | | | | who were traditionally conservative and create a |
| read a book called The emerging Republican Majority. | | | | wedge of class and ethnic hostility toward Jews, |
| Mr. Phillips wasn't the architect of the infamous | | | | "Negroes", Latinos and Northeastern white |
| Southern Strategy but he did, like John the Baptist, | | | | intellectuals who were considerably more liberal. He |
| foretell the coming change in national preference. And | | | | gave the strategy about 30 years to take hold. |
| like old John, Mr. Phillips was shuffled off to obscurity | | | | Phillips was right on the money. |
| after divining the future. | | | | The strategy is not talked about these days because |
| The idea of political parties in the U.S., was frowned | | | | to discuss it would mean opening up a political wound |
| on at the birth of the country for many reasons | | | | in regards to race, ethnicity, xenophobia and class |
| including the polarization that it would cause. | | | | issues. It would expose the conservatives to be |
| Remember that the country was not completely | | | | more interested in power for the sake of power |
| united against England. Many of the very wealthy fled | | | | than the grand Republican ideology of sound but |
| to Canada and back to England during and after the | | | | limited government and fiscal responsibility. |
| war. | | | | The shady cabal who gave us the union of the |
| The real sentiments that preside in this country more | | | | Religious Right and the Sir Edmund Burke |
| closely follow ideology than party. For instance, the | | | | Conservatives will have us believe that they care for |
| Democrats of today would not want to admit that | | | | the common man. |
| they were once the party of slavery or the party of | | | | The idea of the Liberal elite came about in the 60's |
| political fiefdom. The modern Republican party can't | | | | as a way of explaining to the white ethnic working |
| even remember the days when they were the liberal | | | | class voters ( Northern Europeans, Irish, Italians, |
| reform party. The party of progressives who sought | | | | Scandinavians, ect) why the Democratic party's |
| to free the slaves, the founders of women's | | | | Intellectuals were favoring the "Negroes" and "Latins" |
| liberation and the original pro choice movement. | | | | who were moving up from the south and the |
| What we really have is an age old split between the | | | | southwest to the Northeast during the early 50's and |
| idea of who should govern. The conservative | | | | 60's. The emergence of Barack Obama and Hillary |
| movement, verses the progressive movement. This | | | | Clinton as major candidates for the office of |
| ideological divide was evident during the constant | | | | president has thrown the specter of race and class |
| struggle to form our style of government. The | | | | again into the |
| enlightenment philosophers such as John Locke, David | | | | Phillips, the herald of the Conservative age who |
| Hume and others were influential but so were biblical | | | | although marginalized by his peers; was proven |
| scholars and theologians. The constitutional | | | | prophetic. His forecast of the political trend's longevity |
| compromises favored the liberals but the | | | | foretold it's end in the beginning of the 21st century. |
| conservatives have never given up. | | | | Will he be proven right again? The Liberal elites might |
| Many people consider the word liberal to be a slur | | | | also lose their clout a new emerging power; the |
| these days because of the concerted by the | | | | collective purse of the web populace. |