General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Is the (D) behind the name more important than the voting record? [View all]wildeyed
(11,243 posts)Have you been there? It is poor and rural but the Appalachian version, not the deep south. It is very white, which means you don't have the built in 20%+ POC Dem vote that most southern states have. They are mostly socially conservative Scots-Irish. They have had some viscous fights with the 'corporate elite' mining companies in the past. During the Revolution they kicked British ass. They love their guns. Like REALLY love their guns. Do not trust government much. This not a new thing. The GOP taps into that. The Dems want to win there, they need to tap into that populist/rebellious vein, add a strong undercurrent of moral Christianity using the words of Jesus and leave the guns alone. It is what it is.
You need to spend time there to understand. I am trying to be polite, so I didn't use the ROFL smilie, but you are way off base with the idea that the Democratic Party can go in there to "organize and energize". If that happens, it will be a movement lead by locals who grew up there and understand the culture. There will be a strong religious component as well. And it might be happening already. But we, as urban liberals, are not welcome. They straight up distrust us and think we laugh at them. Which is true, mostly.
Where do you live?