Southern Man: Ouch! But Politico's Smith/Martin Have It Wrong

Politico's Ben Smith does his gut level best to insult the South while pointing out that Southerners seem to be missing from Obama's Cabinet. Unfortunately, the supporting analysis provided by Smith and Politico's Martin is simply wrong.

Their absence is part happenstance, but also reflects the declining political power of a region that used to be crucial, and also the fact that -- as Jonathan Martin and I wrote just after the election -- Obama's win sprang in some organic way from the newer, faster-growing, better-educated regions of the country, which don't include most of the South.

Can you name the seven fastest growing states? The New York Times can - also a text article. John McCain won five of the seven. Obama won Florida - but then Wyoming bumped Florida from the top ten in growth last year. Sounds to me like people are voting with their feet and they prefer to move into the Red States, as usual. Let's hope they don't ruin them as they have NJ, MI and others, some of which are actually losing population now along with going broke.

Highest to lowest of the seven and the winner:

NV - Obama

AZ - McCain

UT - McCain

ID - McCain

GA - McCain

NC - Obama

TX - McCain

Not to mention that they totally ignored the Mountain States which McCain won handily. Or are they part of the Deep South now, ... or, um simply as dumb?

Reading tea leaves can be fun but it's no substitute for doing your homework. That's especially true when the tea leaves just aren't there.

Comments

[jharp]

"totally ignored the Mountain States which McCain won handily"

Am I missing something? I thought Colorado was a mountain state.

[SacTownMan]

Politico is a sadly lacking site devoid of any real true political analysis.

[WBestPresidentEver]

Most of the people in the Southern Red states are the smartest, most compassionate, caring loving people around. There is nothing like Good ole Southern Hospitality.
Unlike the rude, hateful, aholes in the northern states and unlike the screwball idiots in California, Washington State, and Oregon. As for North Carolina, I think he really handed put too much Kool-aide there. It was really close.
As far as the electorial map goes thought it clearly shows that the blue votes were mostly in the big cities with the higher populations and the poor folks in those big cites. The map itself tells a lot.
http://img386.imageshack.us/img386/512/maptm0.jpg

[jharp]

I don't get it. The top seven McCain only won 68 electoral votes. And Obama won 20.

McCain lost by 200 electoral votes. It'll take 200 years based on your theory.

I guess things are getting pretty desperate when this is the best you've got.

[jharp]

"Most of the people in the Southern Red states are the smartest, most compassionate, caring loving people around."

Ah yes. The old slave states. And the old racist dixiecrats. Thankfully they are also a minority of voters. And that is why their backward thinking political views are irrelevant.

[Carolynp]

'Most of the people in the Southern Red states are the smartest, most compassionate, caring loving people around.'

"Ah yes. The old slave states. And the old racist dixiecrats. Thankfully they are also a minority of voters. And that is why their backward thinking political views are irrelevant."

Posted by: jharp | Thursday, December 11, 2008 at 08:57 PM

Aaah, so from your vantage point every single person in those states is a racist? And irrelevant? You're a bigot.

[old trooper]

I was going to post here but since it is now the official jharp blog/rant site, I don't want to use up any bandwidth on his blog.

[Dion]

Yes, jharp is a bigot. He makes sweeping generalizations and claims intellectual and moral superiority. Ah yes, jharp is above the great unwashed masses.

[blue]

Being from NC I can shed a little light on how Obama pulled that victory off.

ACORN was extremely active in NC. We had people arrested for voter fraud. They don't check ID and we had alot of illegals showing up in vans voting.

Even where I voted as you waited in line there was pro-Obama literature. I had to ask for it to be removed.

[Dion]

I live in formerly blue NM and can say that beyond the influx of Birkenstock clad leftists from CA, ACORN had a huge presence here in Las Cruces. No ID required to vote of course. The cemetery residents, felons, illegal aliens, and Disney Characters all voted for Obama. Go figure.

[WBestPresidentEver]

Once again jharp, You again have earned it. You are indeed a bigot.

http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/6918/slapat8.gif

[LOL]

colorado, new mexico, and nevada are all mountain states buddy. Furthermore, McCain struggled even in Arizona and Montana. What does that tell YOU?

[LOL]

deeper analysis

Obama won 19 Electoral votes in the mountain west.

McCain won 25 Electoral votes -- and he's from the largest mountain west state! Honestly, if McCain wasn't from Arizona, the republicans probably would have lost it, which means, it's not likely you're going to win it in 2012.

[Dion]

'colorado, new mexico, and nevada are all mountain states buddy. Furthermore, McCain struggled even in Arizona and Montana. What does that tell YOU?'

Wow! Mountain states? It tells me that you looked at a map. Mitt Romney is governor of what? What does that tell you, buddy? What's your point, buddy?

[LOL]

uhh... pretty simple point, McCain did not win the mountain states handily, despite having homefield advantage.

[Dion]

Uhhhh, LOL, Blagojovich, won handily in Il. handily. So what's your point again?

[Fred Beloit]

Dion, I'm takin' quite a likens to yez. Did you know that this here John Depp wears "Che" doohickeys on his person? I think John Depp is a French pirate or something.

[OldCol]

jharp: you do realize that slavery extended beyond the South? NY, Mass, Conn, etc....If you think racism only exists in the South, then you are either a fool or ignorant (ignorant fool?). I'm from the South, and I would bet my education credentials are at least equal to yours (three degrees). On the other hand, if the Progressives really believe that the South no longer counts in elections then they are ignorant fools. Obama took some southern states, barely. These southern states along with the border states went to Obama based on the economy (post election polls clearly indicate that the "economy" was THE issue in the election. No other Progressive issue--the war, healthcare, education--mattered to the majority of voters). Other than that issue, voters in these states have nothing in common with Progressives and will swing back into the Republican Party 2010, provided the Republicans can, as they did yesterday, stand up to the stupidity of implementing a new "New Deal" (which actually made the Depression worse and longer than it should have been--read Smiley's new book it says it all).

[sharprightturn]

It's the people in the South and rural "un-educated" regions who know how to work, grow food, produce, and take care of themselves and, for the most part, don't expect nanny government or anyone else to take care of them....so when Obama and the Dems destroy capitalism and fully tank our economy, who will be most educated and capable then?

[WAHOO WILLIE]

"Yes, jharp is a bigot. He makes sweeping generalizations and claims intellectual and moral superiority."

Not to mention that he is from one of the most racist (by his admission) states in the country.

[WAHOO WILLIE]

"Being from NC I can shed a little light on how Obama pulled that victory off."

Blue, I'm down on the coast and there wasn't much ACORN activity down this way....and as I predicted most coastal counties went for McCain. (Guess we can't blame the yankees for turning us blue.) In fact, it was pretty much the piedmont and RTP area that went for Obie.....Funny isn't it? NAFTA under Clinton killed off the textile industry and the people affected voted for Obie. Shame we get a double demonrat whammy from the fed and four years of Mike Sleazy Lite with Perdue....

[WAHOO WILLIE]

"you do realize that slavery extended beyond the South? NY, Mass, Conn, etc....If you think racism only exists in the South, then you are either a fool or ignorant (ignorant fool?). "

Colonel; No harpie doesn't realize that because he has never dug beneath the surface of any subject. He does not know that the first colony to legalize slavery was Mass. and the first to make it illegal was Georgia. And why he would say that racism only exists in the south...when he can see crosses burning out his den window....is something of a mystery.