Tuesday, October 28, 2008

The Elites & The Base: A Synthesis?

A very sophisticated analysis from Collin White, self-identified as a conservative, an evangelical, and a college senior:

The base identifies with Sarah Palin as one of their own. The connection between them is one of shared cultural and religious values. This sense of common identity transcends politics in a way difficult for some elites to grasp. Many within the evangelical and conservative communities believe that she doesn’t need a massive amount of book knowledge because she shares their worldview and seems to be smart enough that if presented with a problem, she’ll figure it out and do just fine. The rather violent response of some voters to the concerns you and others have voiced calls to mind a politically incorrect truth ... people sometimes cast votes for reasons that might not strike more politically sophisticated people as rational.

Regardless of the fact that your opinions and those of George Will, David Brooks, Peggy Noonan and others are based on your honest appraisal of Palin’s demonstrated aptitude for high office, the base interprets a rejection of Gov. Palin as a candidate as a rejection of the values she represents and of the identity they share. This perception, however inaccurate, is positively poisonous at a time when the conservative movement has lost its ability to communicate its message persuasively and when the evangelical movement is being seduced by a more left-leaning worldview than the one it inherited from its past leaders.

The conservative movement’s future may depend on its elites’ ability to affirm the values and principles of the base while insisting that our leaders have the knowledge and experience necessary to apply those beliefs to complex political problems.

10/28 09:56 PM