You're on to something in general, I think. This could happen if the masses who vote Republican begin electing their own into high office in large numbers (rather than the typical elite corporate insider who is the stereotypical republican officeholder these days). This is already starting to happen in some ways with the Tea Party movement and such, but I have no idea if it will continue.
i'm curious as to what you're basing this on. that's not my impression of the subject. granted i suspect the dynamic will change pretty soon as you know. mostly because of the following:
- obamacare. people tend to support the status quo just by their nature. granted i think obamacare will prove itself to be expensive and unworkable. but opposing any kind of 'universal healthcare' was always a major plank of 'movement conservatism.'
- as kind of implied above, people never want to cut programs
they use. only ones others besides them use.
- changing demographics. hispanics are even less receptive to platitudes about 'small government', which is already a loser with the public. of course republicans reaction to this is to just make snide remarks and throw temper tantrums over 'blacks and mexicans voting for free stuff.'
- lets face it, it was already kind of absurd to be going on about welfare after 1996 but much more so in when you're the worst economy since the '40s. it's just not relevant to most people, even most 'white people'.
with that said not only are they not there yet but 'the tea party' is so all over the place that its kind of pointless talking about them. they're basically pure emotion. it is interesting that for all 'the tea party' and republicans go on about 'the economy' being the most important issue to them their actual behavior doesn't seem to bear that out. i'd say they were a failed rebranding attempt by the religious right/christian zionists.. except it seems that the border issue is something the 'tea party' bloc does differ substantially from evangelicals (who are more pro amnesty than the mainline gop) on. i suspect that will be a major game changer if the border bill makes it past the house.
