More Olive Branches Than Switches Needed Today

When 72-year-old U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) appeared at the Penn Center last week on his first Southern speaking tour, he posed a question that may seem simple. But it continually vexes and frustrates politicians, pundits, political scientists and columnists:
“Why do white working-class people vote against their own interests?” he asked about 150 people at the annual meeting of the Progressive Network.
By this, Sanders, a plain-spoken man who has described himself as a socialist, was wondering why white voters kept electing Republicans who supported economic policies that keep rich folks in control of an economy that has become more oligarchic (rich people pulling the strings) than truly democratic.
“The top 1 percent [of Americans] owns 38 percent of the wealth,” Sanders said. “But the bottom 60 percent of Americans own 2.3 percent of the wealth.”
And so begins a debate on distribution of wealth, economic policy, the loss of manufacturing in the country, free trade, and more.
But Sanders’ question remains, as does its converse: Why do some conservative minority segments of our population vote against their interests? In other words, why do they vote for Democrats who may support abortion or gay marriage, which many religious minorities find loathsome?
After a lot of thought and messaging on Facebook, it’s clear both questions elicit a lot of heartfelt responses about what most seem to agree is a very complicated subject. But there’s a thread that seems to run through answers to both questions, which will probably start as many new arguments as the old ones that led to various Occupy protests and the recent government shutdown mess.
That common thread is fear.
Republicans and Democrats use fear to keep their core supporters in line and to lure independents to support their candidates.
“Not everything is about money,” one conservative woman said on Facebook. She, like millions of white, working-class voters, may fall prey to fear spread by conservatives that gay marriage or abortion or Obamacare will ruin America and that by electing Republicans, conservatives can thwart the “liberal agenda.”
In the South, white, working-class voters also fall victim to Republican campaigns that use race as a way to divide people into “us” and “them” — another tactic of fear that’s been working in South Carolina since the 1739 Stono Rebellion and tough laws then passed to keep slaves in their place.
Before you get all hot and bothered, please realize that Democrats also use fear to keep their supporters in line, as one GOP consultant observes: “Why is it those on the left don’t see the same phenomena on their side? The GOP is much more conservative on social issues, as many African Americans with strong church influence are. It cuts both ways.”
Yes, it does. Democrats get about 95 percent of the black vote. Why? Because they offer an agenda that support social safety nets and they’re never ashamed of reminding people that Republicans might take away food stamps or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. For these voters, the fear of losing more money for public schools to voucher programs or community health centers that they rely on for health care trumps social issues like gay marriage.
So what can be done about an electorate that seems increasingly frustrated, angry, and fractured? Two things would help:
More voter education: Voters, regardless of ideological leanings, should do more to learn about where candidates stand and what their views will mean over the broad spectrum of issues. Single-issue voting does not lead to a healthy democracy.
Civility: Yes, voters are angry at what’s happening in Washington and what may not be happening in Columbia. But as long as partisanship rules, elected representatives won’t talk and, more importantly, listen to be able to develop compromises. More olive branches are needed, not switches.
Yes, like many, I’m tired of Congress. I’m tired of partisan leaders. But I want America’s experiment with democracy to work. For it to continue to thrive, we’ve got to get our economic house in order, reduce partisan bickering and start listening to hammer out compromises on an array of issues that are keeping us from moving forward.
Andy Brack is publisher of Statehouse Report. He can be reached at: brack@statehousereport.com.