It was a 95-page report that combined a series of surveys and focus groups that were taken before as well as after the Presidential election six months ago. The survey, which compiled responses from young Republicans 30 years of age and under, showed that "rich" and "religious" are two words that best describe the party; "open minded, caring, cooperative" were the words that least describe it.
When asked who comes to mind as a leader in the party, the top responses were Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck and Bill O'Reilly -- rightwing media blowhards, and not a legislator among them. The steady stream of outrageous statements and polarizing rhetoric that came from one Republican candidate after another last year led to those under 30 describing that party as "closed-minded, racist, rigid and old-fashioned."
The bottom line shows that if the Regressive republican party is going to ever attract younger voters again, it's going to have to change its stance on most issues.
It needs to stop attacking teachers, cops and firemen and labeling them "thugs" as was the case every day and every night on Fox last year when Republican governors cut so many of their jobs, leading to huge demonstrations, mainly in Wisconsin.It needs to stop being the party of "legitimate rape," a phrase uttered by one Todd Aiken who claimed that if a woman is "legitimately raped," she can't get pregnant because "the female body has ways of shutting that whole thing down."
Another Regressive, Richard Murdock, who ran for US Senate in Indiana last year, described a pregnancy resulting from rape as "something god intended."
Virginia's Regressive republican governor, Bob McDonnell, known as Governor Forced Ultrasound, or "Trans-Vaginal Bob", actually signed a bill requiring medically unnecessary, invasive ultrasounds to be forced on women -- at their expense -- before being allowed to have a legal, Constitutional abortion.
The Republican platform itself, adopted at Willard Romney's convention, stated that the party was against all abortions, with no exception for incest or rape.
After all of this, anytime a Regressive was asked about their party's War on Women, they'd put on the confused face and ask, "what war on women? Why, whatever do you mean?"
Perhaps if Regressives were serious about attracting women voters, they'd disband their Legitimate Rape Caucus and stop the attacks on women's reproductive health.
Maybe they should also drop their rabid opposition to marriage equality, which is embraced in overwhelming numbers with those under 30.
Their own presidential candidate, Willard Romney, expressed vile contempt for half the country during a candle-lit fundraiser for the wealthy in Boca Raton, when he thought no one was recording his comments. Referring to 47% of Americans as a bunch of deadbeats who won't take responsibility for themselves is not the way to win friends and influence people -- or get them to vote for you.
Making life so miserable for undocumented Hispanics in hopes that they "self-deport" is not the way to attract Hispanics.
Maybe Regressive governors in dozens of states should stop shortening early voting hours and cutting early voting days in hopes of suppressing "the wrong people from voting."
If the Republican party wants to stop being referred to as The Regressive Party, perhaps it should immediately stop being overtly hostile toward women, gays, Hispanics, blacks and young people.
Louisiana's Governor, Piyush Jindal even told his party point blank: stop being the stupid party.That means stop denying science and math and embracing superstition.
Will they change their attitude and public image to keep from going extinct, based on the results of their own survey? Probably not, since they haven't changed a thing since their last autopsy right after the election. And not changing will mean people under 30 will continue to stay away in droves from the party they see as being represented by Mr. Burns from The Simpsons.
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