Indepedence Day follow up

Gallup released a poll a couple days before Independence Day showing an increase in the number of Americans who are willing to describe themselves as "Extremely Patriotic."  The increase is hardly worth noting since a total of 74% Americans call themselves either "Extremely Patriotic" or "Very Patriotic" with the individual being allowed to discern between the two. What is worth noting is what is driving the increase, and the timing of it:

The increase in the overall percentage of Americans calling themselves "extremely patriotic" is driven largely by seniors, Republicans, and conservatives -- all of whom are significantly more likely to say so than they were in 2005. Republicans' relatively higher identification with the "extremely patriotic" label is particularly intriguing when one considers that Democrats are currently far more likely than Republicans to say they are satisfied with the way things are going in the country (41% vs. 7%, respectively).  Still, the majority of Americans in each of these subgroups say they are "extremely" or "very" patriotic.

The interesting thing, as Gallup points out, is the sharp increase of patriotism among conservatives and Republicans despite being unhappy with the current course of the country.  The only logical conclusion from that is that their opposition to the current administration and its policies isn't driven by partisanship or selfish ideology, but by a genuine concern for America and her well being.  We oppose Obama not because he's black, a Democrat, or anything like that, but because we genuinely believe that his policies harm America.  Even if we're misguided, our priorities and loyalties still lay firmly with America, which significantly undermines the liberal accusation that we are rabid, racist, haters - unless they're suggesting that a love for country includes those attributes, or a that their patriotism is the only right form patriotism, something I hardly think would be popular.

The slight drop with Democrats and liberals is hardly concerning since, as Gallup stated, they retain a majority when you consider the "Very Patriotic" bracket.  However it would be interesting to theorize why they're not seeing a surge in patriotism while they control both the Presidency and Congress.  Perhaps they expected both to enact even more of the leftist agenda?  Too much of a stretch to add this to the evidence of liberals going far left?

Conservatives still gaining ground

Whether you're a bit down or encouraged about the political climate today, Gallup brings you some good news with one of their latest polls:

Conservatives have maintained their leading position among U.S. ideological groups in the first half of 2010. Gallup finds 42% of Americans describing themselves as either very conservative or conservative. This is up slightly from the 40% seen for all of 2009 and contrasts with the 20% calling themselves liberal or very liberal.

Not only have conservatives maintained their plurality, but there are now twice as many self-described conservatives than there are liberals.  The increase in people describing themselves as conservatives likely comes from the drop in those calling themselves moderates, and I can't help but feel that that has something to do with another chart Gallup provides:

While the Republican party has been the conservative party for at least the last ten years, the Democrats went from a party with a plurality of moderates, to one with a plurality of liberals.  The fact the Democrats are liberal really isn't going to be surprising to anyone, but it is interesting that as liberals have taken over the Democrat party, more and more people have identified themselves as conservatives.  That leads me to believe that people's views aren't changing so much as the left is increasingly looked upon as radical, or otherwise outside the mainstream while conservatism is stilled viewed favorably.

Perhaps the most important thing to take away from this is a continued sense of momentum conservatives have leading up to the midterm elections.  Rasmussen shows that Republicans are up 8 points among likely voters on the Generic Congressional Ballot:

Republican candidates now hold an eight-point lead over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, June 20.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 44% of Likely U.S. Voters would vote for their district's Republican congressional candidate, while 36% would opt for his or her Democratic opponent.  Last week, Republicans led 46% to 36%, tying the GOP's largest lead ever since it first edged ahead of the Democrats a year ago.

In January of last year the numbers were reversed with 42% supporting Democrats and only 36% supporting the Republican.  Democrats have to contend with a universally unhappy response to the oil spill, strong anti-Obamacare sentiment, an economy that continues to struggle, and the increasing view that Obama is just as much to blame as Bush for the state of the economy.  Unless something major changes in the next few months - and there's no reason to think anything will - Democrats will find themselves replaced in the House, and possibly (though unlikely) even the Senate.

Something to think on:  Is Republicans taking control of the House and/or Senate a good thing for Obama in 2012?

Unearned loyalty and false accusations

In 1960 50% of blacks identified themselves as Democrats. In the next four years there was a whirlwind of racial unrest which climaxed with the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964. In the 1964 election 82% of blacks were now Democrats. Fast forward to 2000 in which Al Gore won 90% of the Black vote.   In 2004 John Kerry won 88% of the Black vote.  In 2008 Obama won 95% of the Black vote.  A single act of legislation had bought the loyalty of an entire race.

Democrats quickly learned that along with that loyalty came a powerful new weapon: the race card. Today Republicans and Conservatives are regularly accused of racism.

No, hold on I've got a few more links: Racism, Racism, Raaaaacism!!!!!

To put this into perspective:  In the 2004 election a higher percentage homosexuals voted for Bush then blacks, and that was when gay marriage was one of the biggest issues.  That's not to imply that civil rights isn't a big issue, because it is, but why was it worth almost 50 years of blacks voting Democrat almost universally.  Surely the Republicans opposed this legislation in some big, or otherwise unforgivable way:

•  A higher percentage of Republicans than Democrats voted for the Civil Rights Act.
•  Howard W. Smith, a Democrat, used his position to block the legislation, and was only forced down after Lyndon B. Johnson used his political experience and the assassination of JFK to push the legislation forward
• Senator Robert Byrd from West Virginia was a former KKK member and lead the charge against the Civil Rights Act.  Today he is the longest serving member of the Senate.

Not only did Republicans have a higher percentage of support for the bill, but one of the Senators who lead the charge against the Civil Rights Act of 1964 still serves as a Democrat on the Senate TODAY.  Not only did he oppose the bill, but Senator Byrd was a former member of the KKK.  Its insane to think that the same people who constantly accuse their opposition of racism count a former Klan member not just as their own, but as the highest ranking member of the Senate and third in line to become President after Biden and Nancy Pelosi.

Republicans didn't oppose the Civil Rights Act, but perhaps they did something after the act that earned the animosity of blacks:

• Nixon decreased the number of black children attending segregated schools in the South from 70% to 18%.
• Nixon also implemented the Philadelphia Plan, the first significant federal Affirmative Action program.
• George H. W. Bush appointed Clarance Thomas to the Supreme Court, making him the second black to be a justice in the court.
• George H. W Bush also promoted Colin Powell to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest position in the Department of Defense, and making him the first black to hold that position.
• Ronald Reagan appointed Colin Powell as the first black assistant to the President in National Security Affairs.
• George W Bush put together the most ethnically diverse cabinet in US history.
• George W Bush appointed Colin Powell as the first black Secretary of State.  At the time this was the highest position a black had ever reached in the US government.
• Bush launched the largest medical relief program in the world, which saved over one million African lives and reduced the number of AIDs related deaths in the countries it affected by 10%.  In addition, Bush also increased trade to Africa and played peacemaker in places like Liberia and parts of Sudan.

Clearly these racist Republicans have driven off blacks with their racist policies!  Er...

One of the most commonly use excuses for the black switch to the Democrat party is how Nixon used States Rights and Social Conservative values to reach out to the Southern States in 1968.  The problem with this is that blacks had already abandoned the Republican party in 1964, so this argument isn't really valid.

Looking into the events before the Civil Rights Act also helps solidify the Republican position:

• The Great Emancipator, Abraham Lincoln, was also the first Republican President.
• The first black Senator and member of Congress was a Republican.
• Ulysses S. Grant passed the first civil rights act, the Civil Rights Act of 1875.
• Teddy Roosevelt welcomed Booker. T Washington to dinner at the White House, causing a great deal of controversy.
• Eisenhower introduced and then signed the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and 1960.
• Eisenhower also enforced the desegregation in the military.
• When Arkansas refused to desegregate their schools, Eisenhower federalized the National Guard and used them to defend black children.

The fact of the matter is that there really isn't much of a basis for why blacks abandoned the GOP and have remained fanatically loyal to the Democrats.  Yes, racism exists in this nation still, but it's exists only on the far fringe and certainly not within mainstream Republican or Conservative politics, at least no more then it does within Democratic politics.  Teddy Roosevelt has a quote which, while extremely outdated, is fairly accurate for how I feel Republicans have viewed blacks.  Don't focus too much on the non-bold:

"I have not been able to think out any solution of the terrible problem offered by the presence of the Negro on this continent, but of one thing I am sure, and that is that inasmuch as he is here and can neither be killed nor driven away, the only wise and honorable and Christian thing to do is to treat each black man and each white man strictly on his merits as a man, giving him no more and no less that he shows himself worthy to have."

For the time this was pretty radical, and I feel like this is the key separation in how each side approaches race.  A Liberal looks at a black man and sees a poor, beaten down man who needs to be lifted up.  The Conservative sees a man, just like any other, who has the ability to turn himself into anything he wants if he works hard enough for it.  The Liberal judges us based on the past of our ancestors, while the Conservative judges for what WE do with our lives.  Where Conservatives see you as an equal, Liberals see you as a victim that cannot take care of himself.

In my previous post I called blacks tools for the Democrats, and the current day situation with Obama illustrates this perfectly.  The last polls I saw that gave race showed Obama with a upper 80% approval rating with blacks, an approval rating in the 40s among whites, but what has Obama done to earn such an approval rating from blacks?  When Katrina happened Bush was blamed and called a racist despite it not being his fault.  When Joe Wilson said "You lie!" to Obama we were told it was because he was a racist.  But when Obama killed a voucher program that primarily helped poor black students in DC go to better schools, where were the black leaders who are supposed to protect the black community?  And when Obama couldn't find the money (a rare occurrence in his Presidency) to continue the wildly successful anti-AIDS program in Africa, why was the only group complaining the Global AIDS Alliance?  Where was Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, the NAACP, and the ACLU?  They'll defend the Communist Truther Van Jones, but not Africans and black school children?

Obama has done nothing for blacks, and yet they lend their support in a most fanatical way.  Yes, a large chunk of that is because he's black, but does anyone else get the feeling that there would of been no outcry from the black community unless he was a Republican?  Blacks today follow a political party and ideology that does not care for them as anything other then a source of votes.  Their leaders care less for the community then they do politics.  The truth is that there is no justifiable reason for them to call racism on the Republican party, but they do so anyways because its political convenient to stir up the black masses against the Conservative opposition.  They crack down on free thought, and they create an environment which says one thing:  "You are oppressed, abused, and are unable to escape the hell that surrounds you.  You must follow us, the Liberal Democrats, in order to find freedom."

They have, in effect, created a modern day form of slavery.