Since Texas is of special interest this week here is an interesting observation by a member of the Editorial Board of the San Antonio Express-News Political Tectonics in Texas Should Worry GOP
During a two-decade span that began in the early 1980s, Texas went from being a one-party state dominated by Democrats to a one-party state dominated by Republicans. No Democrat has won a statewide election since 1994.
The anecdotal evidence was that Hispanics nationwide abandoned the Republican Party in 2006 because of harsh rhetoric associated with the debate over illegal immigration. In Texas especially, the swiftness and severity of the political backlash was disconcerting.
…The downside for Texas Republicans, however, is that there simply is no action at the grassroots level to counter the massive organizational effort of Democrats. And that holds implications for GOP candidates up and down the ballot in November — and beyond. Republicans hold a slender 79-71 majority in the Texas House. A shift of only a handful of seats by 2010 could put the next round of redistricting in the hands of Democrats, with attendant implications for the composition of the state’s congressional delegation.
It is rare that I agree with President Bush, but alienating the Hispanic community with harsh rhetoric and failure to create a path to Citizenship will reduce the appeal of the GOP.
Born 1950, Married, Living in Austin Texas, Semi
Retired Small Business owner and investor. My political interest
evolved out of his business experience that the best decisions come out of an objective gathering of information and a pragmatic consideration of costs and benefits. I am interested in promoting Centrist candidates and Policies. My posts are mostly about people and policies that I believe are part of the solution rather the problem.