Jim Webb: In his own words (from TPM Cafe)

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“The Reagan Democrats” – and how to get them back

By Jim Webb

Toward the end of the Vietnam War, a large number of previously loyal Democrats left the party, many of them feeling unwelcome after the party’s drift away from its more traditional support of national defense and blue-collar workers. Some of them ended up supporting Ronald Reagan, while others took positions as independents, and formed much of the group that supported Ross Perot in 1992 and 1996.

The end result of this voter migration is that the Democrats have struggled in national elections since 1968, having lost much of their support base in the South. Republicans have won 5 of the last 7 presidential elections, and Bill Clinton’s victories owed much to the Perot vote.

It’s time for the Reagan Democrats and others who left the party to understand that their natural base is in the traditional Democratic Party – the party that best gives a voice to those who lack a full voice in the halls of power. To start with, the Republican party of George W. Bush is not the Republican party of Ronald Reagan. Other than with those who identify with the Christian right, it would be wrong to think that the Republicans have the firm loyalty of those who left the Democrats for Reagan. The decline in public education and the outsourcing of jobs has hit this culture hard. Their sons and daughters serve in large numbers in a war whose validity is increasingly coming into question.

As with other ethnic groups, those inside the culture know how to read cultural code words. Ronald Reagan knew how to talk to rural and blue-collar Democrats. Reagan portrayed an America with strong beliefs and values. Yet our greatest victory, the cold war, was won without a single shot being fired.

I intend to make the issues that are important to this group of people a central part of my campaign. I will not do this as part of a political strategy. I will talk about these issues - education, jobs, and how and when we use our military – because they are important to every American.

Democrats, and the party as a whole, would benefit by reaching out to this group of Americans. Republican extremism on social issues, misdirected foreign policy and poor management of the economy gives Democrats an opportunity to create unity among rural and urban voters of all ethnic backgrounds. I am running for the senate as a Democrat in Virginia because I believe that with the right leadership and foresight, Democrats can bridge this divide.

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