Credit Unions Can’t Be The Party Of Old White Men
by MATT DAVIS
The morning after election day is euphoric for half of the electorate, and misery for everyone else. While the victors celebrate a hard fought battle and the pleasure of knowing that they bet on the right horse, the losing side is left to wonder what went wrong. That’s exactly what’s going on today. A presidential election that was supposed to be won by a razor-thin margin ended up being relatively lob-sided – especially considering the electoral college. Republicans seem as stunned as they are confused. All of the makings of victory were there for the Grand Old Party: an incumbent with less than a 50% approval rating, presiding over a country with high unemployment and weak consumer sentiment in an “it’s the economy, stupid” poltical environment. Instead, the GOP has never seemed older, whiter, weaker, or male.
The problem is that true conservatism has nothing to do with race, gender, sex, or economic class. The idea is supposed to be that anyone in America, if he or she works hard, has a chance to thrive. Anyone who has a dream can pursue it. Anyone who seeks happiness can find it. Neighbors help neighbors not because they have to, but because they want to. Conservatives believe that government is supposed to be big enough to provide a safety net for those who cannot help themselves, but not bigger. Government should err on the side of freedom, not over-reaching and meddling.
That narrative has been lost. And in the hierarchy of those responsible, Republicans themselves are to blame. Nearly 1 in 5 voters were under 29. Of Americans under 30 who were eligible to vote, 49.3% exercized their civic duty, compared to just 36% of this group that voted in 1996. Young people voted against Romney by a 23-point margin. Women overwhelmingly supported Barack Obama, 55% to Romney’s 43%. Unmarried women voted for Obama at a 2-to-1 clip. According to exit polls, less than 30% of Latinos and 10% of African Americans voted for Romney. Amazingly, non-whites were responsible for only 12% of Romney’s vote total.