Is the Republican's problem that they're too Southern?

[Non Swing Voter]

Seems to turn off Northeast and West Coast voters.

What's worse, some regions of the South such as Northern Virginia and South Florida don't even share a southern culture anymore.

The focus has been on gay marriage lately and how it's wrecking the GOP with moderate voters, but maybe the bigger issue is the overall culture Republicans are perceived to have.

[GaussLaw]

Seems to turn off Northeast and West Coast voters.

What's worse, some regions of the South such as Northern Virginia and South Florida don't even share a southern culture anymore.

The focus has been on gay marriage lately and how it's wrecking the GOP with moderate voters, but maybe the bigger issue is the overall culture Republicans are perceived to have.

Um, the current GOP Senate candidates are not focusing on gay marriage at all, at least based on their current ads and campaign.

[CapoteMonster]

Seems to turn off Northeast and West Coast voters.

What's worse, some regions of the South such as Northern Virginia and South Florida don't even share a southern culture anymore.

The focus has been on gay marriage lately and how it's wrecking the GOP with moderate voters, but maybe the bigger issue is the overall culture Republicans are perceived to have.

Um, the current GOP Senate candidates are not focusing on gay marriage at all, at least based on their current ads and campaign.

I bet you most moderate voters think the Republican Party is anti-gay. The GOP has done many things in the past 20 years to further alienate voters and that includes not realizing how America's changed. There's a reason moderate Republicans are a extinct species. They are out of touch with America socially and their leaders say so many stupid things (legitimate rape). Also they've become the do-nothing congress Truman described.

[ElectionsGuy]

If anybody's focusing on gay marriage, its liberals. Conservatives know its not a good issue for them anymore, and they only talk about it when asked about it. In fact this liberal forum has a whole thread about same-sex marriage laws.

But anyway, I do sort of agree with the notion but mostly don't. It depends on certain voters, with some voters its not attractive. For most people however they probably don't mind the particular culture of their party and stick to issues, or they like the culture of their party. Besides, southern people have great qualities that come with the religious, conservative culture that people often ignore. So no, I don't think they're too southern.

[Free Bird]

If anybody's focusing on gay marriage, its liberals. Conservatives know its not a good issue for them anymore, and they only talk about it when asked about it. In fact this liberal forum has a whole thread about same-sex marriage laws.

But anyway, I do sort of agree with the notion but mostly don't. It depends on certain voters, with some voters its not attractive. For most people however they probably don't mind the particular culture of their party and stick to issues, or they like the culture of their party. Besides, southern people have great qualities that come with the religious, conservative culture that people often ignore. So no, I don't think they're too southern.

Burn. Finally someone calls it out.

[Gass3268]

If anybody's focusing on gay marriage, its liberals. Conservatives know its not a good issue for them anymore, and they only talk about it when asked about it. In fact this liberal forum has a whole thread about same-sex marriage laws.

But anyway, I do sort of agree with the notion but mostly don't. It depends on certain voters, with some voters its not attractive. For most people however they probably don't mind the particular culture of their party and stick to issues, or they like the culture of their party. Besides, southern people have great qualities that come with the religious, conservative culture that people often ignore. So no, I don't think they're too southern.

Burn. Finally someone calls it out.

The fourm has been around for 10 years and the partisan make up has stayed close to same as it is now. You really think his is the first time someone said this was a liberal place?

[Free Bird]

If anybody's focusing on gay marriage, its liberals. Conservatives know its not a good issue for them anymore, and they only talk about it when asked about it. In fact this liberal forum has a whole thread about same-sex marriage laws.

But anyway, I do sort of agree with the notion but mostly don't. It depends on certain voters, with some voters its not attractive. For most people however they probably don't mind the particular culture of their party and stick to issues, or they like the culture of their party. Besides, southern people have great qualities that come with the religious, conservative culture that people often ignore. So no, I don't think they're too southern.

Burn. Finally someone calls it out.

The fourm has been around for 10 years and the partisan make up has stayed close to same as it is now. You really think his is the first time someone said this was a liberal place?

First time since I joined.

[King]

The biggest problem is narcissism. They're just not very nice people.

[Indy Texas]

Seems to turn off Northeast and West Coast voters.

What's worse, some regions of the South such as Northern Virginia and South Florida don't even share a southern culture anymore.

The focus has been on gay marriage lately and how it's wrecking the GOP with moderate voters, but maybe the bigger issue is the overall culture Republicans are perceived to have.

Um, the current GOP Senate candidates are not focusing on gay marriage at all, at least based on their current ads and campaign.

It's not that the candidates are focusing on it. It's that the issue is being talked about in society as a whole a lot and the GOP is decidedly on the wrong side of the issue.

Are there any Senate candidates running this year who have unequivocally supported the right of all Americans to civil marriage?

[ElectionsGuy]

The biggest problem is narcissism. They're just not very nice people.

Are you an actual republican?

[eric82oslo]

The biggest problem is narcissism. They're just not very nice people.

Are you an actual republican?

He's an intermoderate.

[Dixie Reborn]

If anybody's focusing on gay marriage, its liberals. Conservatives know its not a good issue for them anymore, and they only talk about it when asked about it. In fact this liberal forum has a whole thread about same-sex marriage laws.

But anyway, I do sort of agree with the notion but mostly don't. It depends on certain voters, with some voters its not attractive. For most people however they probably don't mind the particular culture of their party and stick to issues, or they like the culture of their party. Besides, southern people have great qualities that come with the religious, conservative culture that people often ignore. So no, I don't think they're too southern.

Burn. Finally someone calls it out.

This site is well known for its left wing bias.

[TJ in Oregon]

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

[Person Man]

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

Regions with southern culture don't exist exclusively in the South and there are parts of the South that aren't really southern. More former than the latter.

[ElectionsGuy]

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

Regions with southern culture don't exist exclusively in the South and there are parts of the South that aren't really southern. More former than the latter.

I'm just curious, what non-southern areas have cultures that are southern? Maybe rural Missouri, though I can't figure out anything else. I can see areas in the south that don't have a southern culture (Northern Virginia, Southeast Florida) however.

[Rockefeller GOP]

Maybe not "too Southern" but definitely - at least in image to independents - too culturally conservative and not tolerant enough, and a lot of that has been a result of pandering to social conservatives, largely located in Southern states.  JMO.

[Maistre]

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

"errrr, errrrr"?

?

[TJ in Oregon]

Socially conservative ≠ Southern

They may correlate with each other demographically but they're definitely not the same thing.

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

"errrr, errrrr"?

?

Those were Voinovich's words trying to describe a southern accent. I'm not sure exactly what he's going for with the err err, but I think the point still stands.

[Person Man]

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

Regions with southern culture don't exist exclusively in the South and there are parts of the South that aren't really southern. More former than the latter.

I'm just curious, what non-southern areas have cultures that are southern? Maybe rural Missouri, though I can't figure out anything else. I can see areas in the south that don't have a southern culture (Northern Virginia, Southeast Florida) however.

Definitely the southern Midwest. The areas that are just on the other side of the Ohio from the South. Rural Indiana, Ohio and Illinois. Rural Pennsylvania just seems to be "really conservative".

[sg0508]

One of the issues is, a lot of Americans associate southern accents with ignorance and to some extent, even racism. 

[TrueMan]

An important takeaway from the recent budgetary battles is that the principal reason for the Republican party’s low approval rating is its mediocre support among its own membership. That's a real problem.

[ElectionsGuy]

Yes, that's part of it. This might sound stupid, but I think part of the Republicans' problem is that they have too many influential figures with southern accents. That's a turn-off for the rest of the country.

As George Voinovich once said, "It's the Southerners. They get on TV and go 'errrr, errrrr.' People hear them and say, 'These people, they're Southerners. The party's being taken over by Southerners. What the hell they got to do with Ohio?' "

Regions with southern culture don't exist exclusively in the South and there are parts of the South that aren't really southern. More former than the latter.

I'm just curious, what non-southern areas have cultures that are southern? Maybe rural Missouri, though I can't figure out anything else. I can see areas in the south that don't have a southern culture (Northern Virginia, Southeast Florida) however.

Definitely the southern Midwest. The areas that are just on the other side of the Ohio from the South. Rural Indiana, Ohio and Illinois. Rural Pennsylvania just seems to be "really conservative".

OK, I can definitely see it in southern Illinois and Indiana. Though Ohio and Pennsylvania I can only really see it in areas that border West Virginia. Anyways, that makes sense.

One of the issues is, a lot of Americans associate southern accents with ignorance and to some extent, even racism. 

That's truly unfortunate.

[DS0816]

Seems to turn off Northeast and West Coast voters.

What's worse, some regions of the South such as Northern Virginia and South Florida don't even share a southern culture anymore.

The focus has been on gay marriage lately and how it's wrecking the GOP with moderate voters, but maybe the bigger issue is the overall culture Republicans are perceived to have.

The map is the party's No. 1 problem.

When the Republicans had their base state in the north, and won their first presidential election with Abraham Lincoln, the party was victorious in 21 of 33 election cycles that ran from 1860 to 1988. That's 63 percent of presidential election cycles during that time frame. Now, with the counter-realignment, the Republicans' path to victory is the one that used to be the Democrats' of that era.

Watch MSNBC's 2012 election-night video after 11:00 p.m. ET when John McCain's 2008 campaign advisor, Steve Schmidt reflected on California just after host Rachel Maddow announced its Democratic/President Barack Obama projection at the top of that hour. He mentions that the Republicans haven't carried California since 1988. That the state used to carry Republican. And that the Republicans pretty much cease to exist in California. And that's alarming given the long-established history of California having been a trendsetter for the nation.

[DS0816]

One thing more to add: California, the home state of the Republicans' favorite president, Ronald Reagan, and Reagan's birth and President Barack Obama's home state Illinois, have carried in every realigning presidential election since 1860. They carried as well in 1896. They carried in 1932. They carried in 1968. And they carried in 2008. (By the way: So has Ohio.)

[GaussLaw]

The biggest problem is narcissism. They're just not very nice people.

Are you an actual republican?

I had the same question.........I feel like several of the blue avatars on here are 100% ironic, given that I am to the right of a good number of them.