Hispanic voters hold the balance of powerand Republicans aren't winning their support.
By MICHAEL MEDVED
Republicans feel heartened by President Obama's standing in recent polls, which show that only a minority of Americans want him re-elected in 2012. But savvy Democratic analysts look at the same numbers and confidently predict another victory when the president seeks his second term. A breakdown of voter sentiment by race can help clarify the apparent contradiction.
Republicans look at those numbers and say there is no way that Mr. Obama can recover without bringing about a major turnaround with the white majority. Yet Democrats point to the figures and argue that the president will safely win a second term even with this dismal performance in the white communityas long as he replicates his 2008 popularity among African-Americans, Latinos and Asians. They also believe he may do even better among Latinos and Asians when he runs in 2012.
Is this reasoning realistic or ridiculous?
The truth is that Mr. Obama's low standing among white voters is nothing new. He lost that group to John McCain in 2008, winning only 43%. If he fails to improve his terrible standing in the current Quinnipiac poll, and if all currently undecided white voters (25%) break down in the same way as those who have already made up their minds, he'd end up with 38% of white votes.
That's obviously a worse performance than four years ago, but it would yield approximately the same percentage of the overall electorate. Why? Because all observers agree that white voters will comprise a smaller piece of the total voting population than the 74% they represented two years ago. With strong increases in the Latino and Asian voting blocsdue to general population growth and sharply increasing rates of citizenship through naturalizationthe "non-Hispanic white" electorate will likely slip to 70%, or perhaps slightly lower.
If the president performs as poorly in the white community as current polls indicate, he will still win an electoral majority as long as he commands the same percentage of nonwhite voters (83%) that he won in 2008. This seems entirely possible, and based on current polls, it looks likely.
The Quinnipiac survey indicates that Mr. Obama still enjoys huge popularity among people of color, winning his trial heat against an unspecified Republican 44 to 1 among blacks (87% to 2%) and nearly 2 to 1 among Latinos (49% to 26%). In other words, the president maintains his near unanimous support in the black community and has dipped only slightly among Hispanics, where he drew a commanding 67% of the vote in 2008.
Only 65% of Latino voters expressed a candidate preference in the survey's trial heat. That means if Mr. Obama can sway the bulk of the 35% of Latinos who say they "don't know" or are currently uncommitted, the president will replicate his victory formula from 2008. Undecided Hispanic citizens, representing as many as three million votes in the next election, may hold the balance of power in a competitive race.
These numbers help to explain the president's current position on immigration reform and his efforts to block Arizona's tough new immigration law. That legislation is overwhelmingly resented among Latino voters: 66% of Hispanics say they disapprove of it, and 71% say they don't want a similar law in their own states. By nearly 2 to 1 (59% to 32%), these Latino voters want immigration reform to emphasize "integrating illegal immigrants into American society" over "stricter enforcement." This is in stark contrast to both white voters and black voters, who strongly prefer "stricter enforcement."
The administration and its strategists reason that nothing they do on illegal immigration will undermine the enthusiastic support for the president in the black community, or drive his popularity lower among whites. With only 28% of white voters currently committed to backing Mr. Obama for re-election, his standing is already near rock bottom.
But if the Democrats can use the immigration debate to drive the president's numbers even higher among Latinos than in 2008, they can't lose. Viewed another way, if Republicans continue to conduct the immigration debate in a way that drives their numbers even lower among Latinos than in 2008, they can't win. Talking about changing the Constitution to eliminate birthright citizenship, for instance, may bring short-term gains, but it will produce disastrous long-term results in the key voting bloc that is likely to decide the next presidential race.
For Democrats, this analysis offers reason for hope in a dark, dysfunctional season. For Republicans, the numbers suggest a strong basis for recalibration as they look ahead to 2012.
Mr. Medved is the host of a daily, nationally syndicated talk radio show and author of "The 5 Big Lies About American Business" (Crown Forum, 2009).
While I understand the necessity of keeping the troops from becoming complacent, I think the reality is not as dire as Medved states. First, an inordinate number of blacks showed up in '08. Many of them are now disgruntled at the stands Obama has taken. Some have told me they would not vote for him again by either not voting at all or voting for an 'acceptable' Republican.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure where this influx of Latino voters is coming from. Most legal Latinos do not support the illegals (as if that is the only issue they are concerned about). Most are very religious and family oriented, ideals the Dems don't hold dear. The illegals may be vocal, but, as of today, they are not allowed to vote. But with motor voter, ACORN and the rest, I am sure many have registered illegally. Surprise.
This is the scariest thing I've read but he is so right. Those of us who believe in our Constitutional Republic form of government have our work cut out for us. Since BO and his cronies will likely be around for at least 2 more years and possibly 6, we have to work even harder on getting the right people in Congress and weeding out the career politicians who after so many years in office think they own it and can do whatever they want and get away with it.
ReplyDeleteI sent your link to some of the people at the PRO and some friends. Do you know if any of them have subscribed? I'll be sending this one as well in the hope that if they haven't yet, they will subscribe.
I always said in a matter of years the Hispanics will decide elections. Why? - they are the fastest growing segment of U.S. population. I did not expect them to make a difference this fast because many do not vote now. But they can change sooner if their "leaders" put on a drive to register them as voters.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think?