Reply #28: I think some will break away if Rovian threats aren't credible to them. [View All]

[O.M.B.inOhio]

I'm not talking about provincial farmer or vapid suburban repressed housewife who still thinks that the party that opposes abortion and gay rights is the party that must also therefore support their interests. Middle and upper class professionals, executives, and those poor oppressed college republicans - they do get pressure to support Repugs. At the university in my town, there is a libertarian-leaning group of students that called themselves the University Republicans, or somesuch. When the Bush administration revealed that they weren't supporting the meat n' potatoes values of what you call the 'true base' of the Repubs, they decided to rename the organization to use the term Libertarian instead of Republican. Well, somebody "higher up", in the national GOP, I believe, threatened them and told them that they would be "blacklisted" if they changed the club's name. Whether or not there is a network in the GOP to deny kids jobs, law school admissions, etc. is not important; they felt it was credible. This politically active segment of the 'base' will break away if they feel the GOP is impotent in the sectors they intend to work in.