# Why the republicans are destined to fail **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 4, 2022, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919 "2022-02-04T18:12:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/61 "2022-02-06T00:52:46Z")
One thing that needs to be mentioned, all the violence from the few leftists is condemned by virtually all democrats and most leftists. Currently, the solution for many Republicans in congress is to claim that there was no violence from guys that perpetrated things like the January 6 insurrection and even to claim that it was a commendable thing to do. And Just over half of non-congressional Republicans are going off the rails now. [https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/587937-five-takeaways-from-polls-marking-jan-6-anniversary](https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/587937-five-takeaways-from-polls-marking-jan-6-anniversary) > The poll showed a partisan divide among how those involved in the Jan. 6 riot were viewed: 52 percent of Republicans believed that those involved in the attack on the Capitol were protecting democracy, while 45 percent said they were threatening democracy. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/62 "2022-02-06T01:01:08Z")
So the violent protests two summers ago, the Portland autonomous zone nonsense, and now the large increase in smash and grabs, carjackings, highway shootings, et al, were actually done by right wing perps? ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/63 "2022-02-06T01:05:54Z")
Whataboutism is very effective ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/64 "2022-02-06T01:06:18Z")
Who and what are you responding to? You haven’t responded to my cite, which you asked for. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/65 "2022-02-06T01:07:10Z")
I will need to see evidence that the two generations of voters who will dominate this century’s elections and who are the most liberal voters the country has ever seen are beginning a rightward drift before I become convinced that conservatives as they’re currently constructed will approach their current power again. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/66 "2022-02-06T01:08:29Z")
Apparently it’s behind a paywall, all I get is a greyed out screen. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/67 "2022-02-06T01:10:54Z")
He claimed that most of the political violence of late has been on the right. I disagree. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/68 "2022-02-06T01:17:51Z")
Moderating: > [@D\_Anconia](#): > > He claimed that most of the political violence of late has been on the right. I disagree. - And he brought it up in response to your thread hijack about Maxine Waters. It has nothing to do with the topic of this thread. Please drop this hijack now. You have a bad habit of doing this. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/69 "2022-02-06T01:20:33Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > That’s one way to spin it. No, it’s not a way to “spin it”. Read the full text, cited by kenobi\_65 above: She is absolutely positively talking about the children who have been taken away from their parents and put in cages. There is no other interpretation possible. None. There is no room here for disagreement. None. If you continue to deny reality here, there is really nothing more that can be done for you. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/70 "2022-02-06T01:25:08Z")
@Euphonious_Polemic, please review the mod note posted just ahead of this post. Again, please drop this hijack. I realize we posted at nearly the same time, but let’s try to get back on track, ok? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/71 "2022-02-06T01:42:55Z")
deleted ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/72 "2022-02-06T01:51:04Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > I will need to see evidence that the two generations of voters who will dominate this century’s elections and who are the most liberal voters the country has ever seen are beginning a rightward drift before I become convinced that conservatives as they’re currently constructed will approach their current power again. I don’t want to convince you of something I don’t know for sure myself. But the GOP seems to be polling better now than they have in recent years. Admittedly, I don’t know the age breakdown. Also, those most liberal voters ever seen are liable to pressure the rest of the Democratic Party to take positions that are box office poison with independents. I look at sporting rules as arbitrary, and don’t want to argue this next as a moral issue. I only present it as an example of those most liberal Democrats pushing a position that the country isn’t, from a public opinion standpoint, ready for: [16 Penn swimmers issue letter in support of new transgender athlete rules](https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/16-penn-swimmers-issue-letter-support-new-transgender-athlete-rules-rcna14928) A trans woman defeating biological women is a rare situation liable to remain rare. But, because rare, it will be news every time. Whenever a trans woman beats biological women, Republicans will have an opportunity to grab off some previously liberal young sportswomen. That’s because those most liberal voters will push the Democrats to take unpopular positions. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/73 "2022-02-06T03:01:17Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > I will need to see evidence that the two generations of voters who will dominate this century’s elections and who are the most liberal voters the country has ever seen are beginning a rightward drift before I become convinced that conservatives as they’re currently constructed will approach their current power again. I guess I’m not sure which “long term demographics” you think so heavily favor Democrats. It’s because younger voters are liberal? Well, that’s not a new story. The baby boomers gave us the Summer of Love 50 years before they voted for Trump. As people age, they don’t necessarily change their values, but they do change how they prioritize competing values and what they perceive as threats to those values. I do expect that the GOP will continue to evolve their message in ways that will appeal to Gen X and Millennial voters but not necessarily by “edging to the middle”. One of the things that set Trump apart from the Republican pack in 2016 is he didn’t seem to have the typical Republican hardon for tearing up the social safety net (although he did a 180 in office). He paired that up with open xenophobia and racism. It proved a potent combination. I have every confidence that Republican can continue to hone a message that will make some show of addressing voters’ concerns while appealing to their worst instincts. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/74 "2022-02-06T05:44:33Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > I guess I’m not sure which “long term demographics” you think so heavily favor Democrats. It’s because younger voters are liberal? Well, that’s not a new story. The baby boomers gave us the Summer of Love 50 years before they voted for Trump. As people age, they don’t necessarily change their values, but they do change how they prioritize competing values and what they perceive as threats to those values. The USA is becoming inevitably less white over time. What we call minorities today (for how long?) overwhelmingly vote for Democrats. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/75 "2022-02-06T12:40:26Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > The USA is becoming inevitably less white over time. What we call minorities today (for how long?) overwhelmingly vote for Democrats. And over time, what we call minorities today become less overwhelming in their voting for Democrats. So it is a matter of running the numbers to see which trend is bigger. Even if your trend is bigger at the moment (and I don’t see a link showing evidence), it isn’t destined that the competing trends will, in the future, net out to GOP failure. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/76 "2022-02-06T13:21:11Z")
The GOP’s long term problem is generational; younger voters of all stripes may not be wedded to the Democrats but they are firmly opposed to the Republicans in ways that other living generations have not been. The boomer liberals were always a minority. In their twenties, both boomers and Gen Xers voted Republican. Shifting to more conservative positions as one ages has never been a particularly prevalent trend and it will be even less so with these two new generations. They are something we haven’t seen before. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/77 "2022-02-06T13:33:39Z")
The biggest problem the GOP has is self inflicted. They keep drawing the circle around themselves smaller and smaller, with endless purity tests and RINO labels for those who are not white enough, not Christian enough, not misogynist enough and not fascist enough. They have always been a minority party, but sooner or later it will catch up with them. Their only strength has been cultish devotion that drives high turnout, but it will become harder and harder to wring a few more drops of hate out of an increasingly dry towel. ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/78 "2022-02-06T14:43:03Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Well, look, when next I get the chance to vote for one politician or another, I sure hope they’ll get asked whether they believe it’s okay to storm the nation’s capitol and attempt to so kill senators due to said dislike — and if said candidates clarify with a “no,” why then I’ll, uh, vote on a case-by-case basis. Yes, but … > [@Atamasama](#): > > There are fewer Republicans than you can count on your fingers (in Congress at least) who’ve clearly said “no”. The others have kept quiet about it because they want to give a wink-wink “yes” to the base, without putting themselves in obvious jeopardy. > [@octopus](#): > > I have a hard time excusing political violence on behalf of the left while seeing the overreaction and hyperbole of the end of democracy when it’s for the so-called right. Political violence is either an acceptable tool to advance one’s agenda or it isn’t. The events of the summer and fall preceding the “insurrection” speak much louder than the words following it. Sure, but … > [@Atamasama](#): > > I don’t recall any left-wing politicians stirring up the crowd, aiming them at a target, and encouraging them to go to war. And … > [@GIGObuster](#): > > One thing that needs to be mentioned, all the violence from the few leftists is condemned by virtually all democrats and most leftists. Currently, the solution for many Republicans in congress is to claim that there was no violence from guys that perpetrated things like the January 6 insurrection and even to claim that it was a commendable thing to do. (It’s fun going offline for a day and a half and piecing together my arguments from others’ posts!) I honestly appreciate conservative-leaning posts from @The_Other_Waldo_Pepper, @octopus and others, but to take you guys seriously I really need to understand: Do you, without resorting to both-sides arguments, believe that it is wrong for the Republican party to minimize the events of Jan. 6 and thwart investigations into the criminal acts that took place that day? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/79 "2022-02-06T14:50:43Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > The biggest problem the GOP has is self inflicted. They keep drawing the circle around themselves smaller and smaller, with endless purity tests and RINO labels for those who are not white enough, not Christian enough, not misogynist enough and not fascist enough. You know, Bush named two Justices to the Supreme Court back in the ‘90s, and — I don’t believe I’ve ever heard a GOPer disapprove of what Clarence Thomas has done since; only of what David Souter did since. And the second Bush eventually named John Roberts to the Court; and if you ask GOPers about Roberts, and about Amy Coney Barrett, in my experience they — express approval of Barrett, and mutter about wishing Roberts were more like her. Right on the heels of the 2020 election, Virginia’s GOP put up a 2021 ticket for Governor and Lieutenant Governor that — well, yes, _won,_ sure; but my point is, one happened to be white and male, and the other happened to be black and female. And I don’t recall any GOP grumbling about her; just that win. And so on, in the House and the Senate and, uh, Governorship after Governorship; if you’re right, then shouldn’t there be more pushback? (By which I mean: _any_ pushback?) ---
**Author:** ![MikeF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MikeF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeF)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2022, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919/80 "2022-02-06T14:54:06Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > I have a hard time excusing political violence on behalf of the left while seeing the overreaction and hyperbole of the end of democracy when it’s for the so-called right. Just curious…why is it “the left” and “the so-called right”? Also, the dogmatic “purity test” for the right is one question: “Do you believe the election stolen from Trump?” a. Yes b. There were irregularities c. No Of course, a. is the only correct answer. b. simply dodges the question but is tolerable. c. gets you tarred and feathered by your own party. What is the purity question for the left? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-republicans-are-destined-to-fail/958919.md?page=5)