Continuing the GOP’s effort to remake itself as the “Whites Only” party, Fred Thompson suggested earlier this month that he’d abolish birthright citizenship, thus overturning one of the foundational principles of the American melting pot. Now the Orlando Sentinel reports that Thompson’s ill-conceived remarks have stirred up yet more anger among Hispanics in Florida:

Thompson’s comments have angered Hispanic leaders — many of them Republicans — who say they are a crass attempt to court the GOP base. [...]

“It’s not just ramping up the rhetoric,” said Alex Villalobos, a Republican state senator from Miami. “It’s pandering to extremists.”

State Rep. David Rivera, R-Miami, while not criticizing any candidate directly, called the idea a “xenophobic” notion that could drive Hispanic voters from the GOP.

“At best, this would be seen as mean-spirited,” he said. “At worst, it’s seen as bigotry.”

Republicans in recent years have shown a remarkable ability to divide themselves by their own extremism. In Kansas, the GOP surrendered its natural majority as fundamentalist radicals drove moderates into the ranks of the Democratic Party. Will the Republicans’ constant pandering to the nativist white base force a similar outmigration among Hispanic party members in Florida?

Meanwhile, the Cincinnati Enquirer takes a look at the potential consequences of the Republican snub of minority voters for the party’s chances in Ohio. Bush won the Buckeye state in 2004 thanks in large part to his ability to increase his share of the African-American vote there to 16%. The Republican candidate in 2008 looks unlikely to repeat such a performance, thanks to the GOP’s process of ethnic self-cleansing.

Florida, Fred Thompson, Ohio | 4 Comments »

Soren Dayton has been tracking developments in the housing market and reporting on how they could impact next year’s election. His latest post on the subject makes a fairly compelling argument. Dayton looks at a number of key states — NE, CO, CA, MI, FL, OH — and compares Bush’s 2004 margin of victory/defeat with the number of foreclosures in each:

So, if you assume another 6 months as bad as these 6 months (and that the rates stay relatively stable in these states), Florida, Colorado, and Michigan would have a number of foreclosing households greater than the swing of the 2004 election results in those states.

Now, I am not saying that these are all Republican voters. Indeed, many of them will not be. But, by and large, people who think that their incomes will go up tend to vote Republican. In any case, with these large numbers, it is clear that this has the potential to become an election issue. Furthermore, with Nevada, Michigan, and Florida having very early contests, there is a real chance that Presidential candidates will have to take positions on these issues.

Candidates will need a message on this. Maybe they will need policies. In any case, electorally significant numbers of people will be effected by this issue.

I think Dayton is right, and I’ll try to track how the candidates approach the issue as the campaign continues.

California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Ohio | No Comments »