# Americans with Passports - more Democrats or Republicans? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 6, 2012, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848 "2012-09-06T14:16:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/21 "2012-09-06T17:04:25Z")
Living in the Western US, it takes me about the same amount of time to fly to the East Coast (usually JFK or ATL, as I typically fly Delta when going to Europe) as it does to fly from the East Coast to Western Europe. I am usually pretty wiped out for a good 24 hours after getting there, and the older I get the longer it takes me to recover… ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/22 "2012-09-06T17:05:44Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > Do all members of the military get passports? No, not until you need one. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/23 "2012-09-06T17:30:42Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > **John Mace** , this is one of the reasons I ask about politics; I was not trying to politicize it outright. Republicans appear more hawkish than the democrats, so I am exploring if there is a connection to worldliness, or lack thereof, in this appearance. If you weren’t others were. This idea that liberals are more interested in travel than conservatives are is what I was talking about. Read the first response to your OP. Don’t forget all those Mormons heading off for their overseas missions. What do you think the ratio of Democrats to Republicans are? There are lots of reasons for getting a passport, and I suspect one’s political outlook is not at the top of the list. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/24 "2012-09-06T17:34:19Z")
> [@even\_sven](#): > > Do all members of the military get passports? If you are in the mitary you don’t need one except for personal use just like everyone else. To travel on military business you need your military ID and a copy of your orders. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/25 "2012-09-06T17:49:04Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > If you are in the mitary you don’t need one except for personal use just like everyone else. To travel on military business you need your military ID and a copy of your orders. What about dependants and the like? ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/26 "2012-09-06T17:52:58Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > What about dependants and the like? They are also on the orders if it’s a permenant change of station. ---
**Author:** ![araminty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5e925/32.png) [@araminty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/araminty)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/27 "2012-09-06T17:56:01Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > And they tend to have more vacation time too. I think this is probably the major factor. Most of the rest of the world would think that TWO WEEKS of paid time off is ridiculous. (It is). How is one expected to justify the cost and carbon footprint of transcontinental travel for a two week trip? My last job in Australia gave me six weeks of paid time off and as much sick leave as I ever would need. Now, I’ve been scraping together comp time, working overtime as much as possible, and have, for the last two years, taken three week trips. It’s not enough. I can feel my traveller’s soul shrivelling up and dying inside me. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/28 "2012-09-06T18:02:50Z")
I agree with **John Mace** that having a passport probably has a lot more to do with being rich and being able to afford to travel internationally than with one’s politics. Also, note that until fairly recently, Americans didn’t require a passport to go to Canada or Mexico. So passports were really only for intercontinental travel, which again makes fewer people need or want them. I also wonder how the process and cost of getting a passport compares between the US and most of Europe? Getting one in the US costs over $100 and takes several weeks and an in-person application. It’s a pretty big hassle if you don’t expect to use it in the near future. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/29 "2012-09-06T18:05:20Z")
This is outside the scope of the OP, but I found it interesting in a pre-conceived notion shattering way anecdote. In Trinidad the section of immigration that deals with tourists and immigrants is seperate from the other roles, so if you are the spouse of a citizen and need a visa extension or are applying for permanent residency you and your spouse must go to that office building and spend a lot of time in the large waiting room with plenty of time to talk. It ain’t hard to spot the couples where one has a american accent, so what would you guess would be the political affiliation of the american? Republican by far, tend older too. Now maybe it is just the older thing, and of course this population is not anything like what the OP was looking for. I found it surprising is all, it wasn’t what I expected. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/30 "2012-09-06T18:10:32Z")
Lulz at this thread ---
**Author:** ![Capt\_Kirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@Capt\_Kirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt_Kirk)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/31 "2012-09-06T18:10:50Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > If you weren’t others were. This idea that liberals are more interested in travel than conservatives are is what I was talking about. Read the first response to your OP \ What I was trying to express and IMO did not do well, was this. Rural and small town denizens, who tend to vote Conservative/Republican, IME are less interested in the outside world and tend to see it as alien, where City dwellers tend to be more exposed to other cultures and are more interested in the rest of the world. This is oversimplified but as a numbers game, this would indicate that more Liberals/Democrats would have passports. I am not trying to insult anyone, I am just talking about a cultural difference. I have lived in both. **Capt** ---
**Author:** ![simple\_homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@simple\_homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simple_homer)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/32 "2012-09-06T18:23:44Z")
> [@grude](#): > > This is outside the scope of the OP, but I found it interesting in a pre-conceived notion shattering way anecdote. > > In Trinidad the section of immigration that deals with tourists and immigrants is seperate from the other roles, so if you are the spouse of a citizen and need a visa extension or are applying for permanent residency you and your spouse must go to that office building and spend a lot of time in the large waiting room with plenty of time to talk. It ain’t hard to spot the couples where one has a american accent, so what would you guess would be the political affiliation of the american? > > Republican by far, tend older too. Now maybe it is just the older thing, and of course this population is not anything like what the OP was looking for. I found it surprising is all, it wasn’t what I expected. I used to live in the Philippines, which is a country that is very popular with retired American men. The majority of the men that I met there are Republicans. But, they were men that had made the journey to the Philippines to live out their remaining years in one place. Most just want to stay at their home in the Philippines, drink, and complain. In my opinion, they are not men that spend a lot of time exploring other cities or countries. IMHO, the American men that would stop in the Philippines on their travels around Asia are mostly Democrats. The ones that sit in one place and wait to die, are Republicans. ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/33 "2012-09-06T18:24:04Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > I’ve crawled over the rocky shores of Maine, explored caves in Appalachia, watched wild horses run in North Carolina, lounged on lazy beaches in Florida, and traveled through swamps in Louisiana. I’ve seen the sand hills of Nebraska, hill country in Texas, the black hills in South Dakota, and redwoods in California. I’ve gazed in awe at the Grand Canyon and the Great Lakes. > > America may not be culturally diverse, but there’s a hell of a lot to see here. I’ve been overseas as well, but it’s a lot more expensive, and I don’t feel that I’ve run out of stuff to see and do right here. This. My sister and I have talked about going to Europe, but have permanently dropped the idea due to irreconcilable differences over where to stay and where to east. In Paris I’d want to eat at McDonalds and sleep at a Super 8 or whatever equivalent they have there, my sister would want to eat at a snobish French restaraunt and stay at a cute, expensive hotel. And we have different areas we’d like to see, we agree on the Czech Repulic but she wants to see England and southerne Germany I want to see France and eastern Germany. Probably just as well, it’s cheaper to travel in the US and there’s so much to see here I doubt we’d run out. Niagra Falls, Philadelphia, California, the Grand Canyon are all areas we haven’t been to . Oh, and we’re both Republicans. I have a passport just for Canada, she plans to get one for that purpose. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/34 "2012-09-06T18:39:40Z")
> [@Capt\_Kirk](#): > > What I was trying to express and IMO did not do well, was this. Rural and small town denizens, who tend to vote Conservative/Republican, IME are less interested in the outside world and tend to see it as alien, where City dwellers tend to be more exposed to other cultures and are more interested in the rest of the world. This is oversimplified but as a numbers game, this would indicate that more Liberals/Democrats would have passports. I am not trying to insult anyone, I am just talking about a cultural difference. I have lived in both. > > **Capt** That is possibly true, but there is also the opposite effect, which is that rich people travel more than poor people, and very rich people travel internationally much more than poor people. Very rich people tend to be Republicans. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/35 "2012-09-06T18:39:56Z")
> [@Mdcastleman](#): > > In Paris I’d want to eat at McDonalds and sleep at a Super 8 or whatever equivalent they have there… Is this because of cost, or are you not interested in foreign foods/customs? ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/36 "2012-09-06T18:44:04Z")
> [@simple\_homer](#): > > IMHO, the American men that would stop in the Philippines on their travels around Asia are mostly Democrats. The ones that sit in one place and wait to die, are Republicans. Well they will be waiting a long time then, the guys I saw were mostly 40-50 😛 I was just trying to convey that thinking republicans are insular and avoid foreign countries is simplistic at best. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/37 "2012-09-06T19:19:56Z")
> [@simple\_homer](#): > > IMHO, the American men that would stop in the Philippines on their travels around Asia are mostly Democrats. The ones that sit in one place and wait to die, are Republicans. These are harsh stereotypes, yet roughly compatible with my own anecdotal evidence in SE Asia. A third group, businessmen, tend to be independent or Republican. Comparing Americans to Europeans who travel within Europe may not be fair. But consider instead, for example, Cambodia, which is about as hard to reach from either Europe or America. [As shown at this pdf](http://www.unctadxi.org/sections/SITE/etourism/docs/Cambodia.pdf) it gets more visitors from just France and U.K. together than it gets from U.S., despite that U.S. has 2.5 times the combined population of France and U.K. Perhaps that’s partly because Europeans are more used to the idea of foreign travel. (Socialistic governments that force these people to take 6 weeks of paid vacation may be partly to blame.) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/38 "2012-09-06T19:44:50Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > These are harsh stereotypes, yet roughly compatible with my own anecdotal evidence in SE Asia. A third group, businessmen, tend to be independent or Republican. > > Comparing Americans to Europeans who travel within Europe may not be fair. But consider instead, for example, Cambodia, which is about as hard to reach from either Europe or America. [As shown at this pdf](http://www.unctadxi.org/sections/SITE/etourism/docs/Cambodia.pdf) it gets more visitors from just France and U.K. together than it gets from U.S., despite that U.S. has 2.5 times the combined population of France and U.K. Perhaps that’s partly because Europeans are more used to the idea of foreign travel. (Socialistic governments that force these people to take 6 weeks of paid vacation may be partly to blame.) It may also be due to the fact that we don’t have to go as far for a beautiful tropical beach vacation. If thats what I’m looking for I’m going to be thinking of flying for a couple of hours to the Caribbean. Beautiful beaches, much cheaper and I don’t have to blow half my vacation on travel time. ---
**Author:** ![Meyer6](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cc9497/32.png) [@Meyer6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meyer6)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/39 "2012-09-06T20:03:35Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > True that. A country like Australia, which is distant from a lot of destinations, still has a lot of travelers. Stop by Yosemite any summer weekend and you will see and hear them in droves. Distance and cost appears not to be as much of a constraint for them, at least for the younger Australians, as it is for Americans. There certainly seems to be a cultural aspect behind the relative lack of Americans that travel internationally. I have stayed in hostels all over Canada, the USA, Europe, New Zealand, and Australia, and after a while you really start to notice that no matter where you go, the hostel is almost always full of Australians and Canadians, with a smattering of Brits and Germans thrown in for good measure. I met comparitavely few Americans in hostels, especially when you consider that the population of the US is so much larger than all those countries. I agree that there’s lots to see in the US, but Canada and Australia are similarly large and geographically diverse, yet seem to produce lots of overseas travelers. I’m sure the lack of vacation time Americans get is an element, but American culture also just doesn’t seem to place value on international travel the same way as some other cultures, particularly for young people. Having said that, I don’t necessarily think that’s a negative thing. I like to travel, but I don’t think it made me a better person or anything, and I think that the idea of going off to backpack around Europe and ‘find yourself’ is silly at best (and at worst produces snobby 20-somethings who think that getting blotto in a bar in Paris is akin to some kind of enlightening experience). Still, it’s interesting that there is such a difference in how people think about traveling. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2012, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848/40 "2012-09-06T20:04:50Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > It may also be due to the fact that we don’t have to go as far for a beautiful tropical beach vacation. If thats what I’m looking for I’m going to be thinking of flying for a couple of hours to the Caribbean. Beautiful beaches, much cheaper and I don’t have to blow half my vacation on travel time. That’s a good point, but I imagine you could live like a king for a month in Cambodia for what a 3-day weekend on most Caribbean islands would run. (I assume when you say “much cheaper” you mean that getting to the Caribbean from the USA is gonna cost a lot less than getting over to S.E. Asia would be) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-with-passports-more-democrats-or-republicans/633848.md?page=3)