Our New GOP Depression - Part 4: How to Convert a Few Million Democrats

My husband, Bob U., wrote a series of articles, which I think are really insightful. This is Part 4. I invite your comments. You can visit Bob at http://bobuhlar.gather.com/

            Lyndon B. Johnson had his faults. But he also was willing to spend political capital on achieving civil rights. He launched a "War on Poverty." He championed the Voters Rights Act of 1965. He also appointed the first black to the U.S. Supreme Court - Thurgood Marshall. LBJ admitted that his bold actions combating racism had torpedoed the Democratic Party's influence in Southern states.

            The exploding powder keg that was 1968 gave Republicans an opening to place a conservative in the White House for the first time in 36 years. Richard Nixon appealed to southern conservatives by exploiting a fear of change and a promise of security. He claimed that all Democrats were liberal, unpatriotic and supported anarchists - a theme that would be a recurring platform of conservative Republicans.

            One aspect of Nixon's Watergate Scandal that is often forgotten is that the Committee to Re-Elect the President manipulated the Democratic Party's choice of a candidate in 1972. GOP research showed Maine Democrat Ed Muskie would beat Nixon in the 1972 election. Conversely they discovered that Nixon could win if he ran against South Dakota Democrat George McGovern.

            Operatives were dispatched to sabotage the campaign of Ed Muskie. The sabotage was complete after a series of lies and misinformation (including slandering Muskie's wife) ended with the indelible televised image of Ed Muskie standing on a snowy New Hampshire platform as he broke down in tears. This happened before that state's influential primary election.

            The sabotage continued against other Democratic candidates until George McGovern was nominated at the 1972 Democratic National Convention.

            Several prominent southern Democrats switched their party affiliation to Republican. Overt discussion of segregation and women's rights were dropped. Instead, Republicans now stood for "family values" and "strict constructionism." It was better to be pro-God, pro-family and pro-Bible than to be pro-racist, pro-sexist, and pro-homophobic.

            The conservative billionaires now funded a media initiative to label the mainstream media as being "anti-business" and having a "liberal-bias." They also would fund conservative media outlets that would package conservative propaganda as "news."

But the Watergate scandal would temporarily stall the conservative juggernaut.

After the shock of seeing a Republican President and Vice President resign rather than be prosecuted, Southern conservatives had a tough choice in 1976. They failed to get conservative Ronald Reagan nominated as the Republican candidate for President.

            Do they support a moderate Michigan Republican Gerald Ford, or a moderate Georgia Democrat Jimmy Carter, who also was a born-again, Sunday-school-teaching Baptist?

            Most of them supported Carter.

Imagine their shock when Carter wanted to focus on human rights and the war on poverty instead of abortion and prayer in public schools.

            President Carter also had to cope with an unstable world. Ultra-conservative Muslims revolted against the oppressive government of Iran and took hostages at the U.S. embassy. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan.

Carter had to shift his focus to foreign affairs.

The massive social changes of the 50s, 60s and 70s had generated massive resentment among conservatives here at home.

Conservative Christians were also upset. And conservative Republicans were courting their favor. Conservative Christians were getting organized.

Tomorrow - Part 5: Attack the Media