THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 22, 1996 TAG: 9609210020
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J5 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Opinion
SOURCE: MARGARET EDDS
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: 85 lines
L.Douglas Wilder, the nation's first elected black governor, is fond of saying that there's an easy way for the GOP to become the dominant party.
``If they ever sought with open arms the minority vote, Democrats would be lost forever,'' says Wilder, Virginia's governor from 1990 to 1994.
Finally, after years in which Republicans largely ignored such thinking, there is a new spirit of optimism that a marriage can be made. Call it the Colin Powell factor in GOP politics.
When Gov. George Allen took command of the Southern Governor's Association earlier this month, he chose to talk not about tax relief or bloated government or any of a dozen standard GOP themes. Instead, the focus he identified for his yearlong term was inner cities.
``I am offering a challenge to each of you as governors and to the Southern Governors' Association,'' he said in his acceptance speech. ``In pursuing economic development opportunities in our respective states, we must work to foster investment and job creation in our inner cities.''
Proposing a series of miniconferences to be held in Southern cities, Allen said he intends to look at programs and policies that are working and why.
``We need to look beyond what government alone can do,'' he concluded with a distinctly Republican twist. ``We need to find those innovative and resourceful people who are helping themselves - and inspiring their neighbors - to create a brighter, opportunity-filled future.''
This is good news. It may be in the best interests of political-campaign consultants to promote voting gaps based on gender and race. But it is in the best interests of democracy that our differences be defined by ideas, not demographics.
The defining trend in Southern politics over the last several decades has been the near-certainty that African-Americans will vote in lock step with the Democratic Party and the increasing certainty that whites - and particularly white males - will vote Republican.
The unhealthy consequence is that in some settings the flight of whites from the Democratic Party has had a direct connection to the ascendency of blacks within it. Shorn of any chance of attracting black voters, Republicans have seized the themes that are most likely to coalesce a conservative white vote. At times, a racial overtone has been strong.
Now, however, a new realization is dawning, spurred by a new generation of GOP leaders, including Allen and Attorney General Jim Gilmore. While black voters as a group are far more liberal than the average Republican when it comes to the role of government in society, there are points of philosophical connection.
Polls have long shown that African-Americans outdo many of their fellow Americans in devotion to God-and-country. Religious faith is a bulwark for many. Support for a strong national defense is high. Those who have succeeded economically take a backseat to no one in their appreciation for individual initiative. Black voters are as divided when it comes to social issues such as gambling, abortion, and homosexuality as white voters.
Tactically, some Republicans are also recognizing the merit of Wilder's advice. It does not require splitting the African-American vote in half for Republicans to benefit from African Americans' support. Given the GOP's current strength among white voters, it only takes whittling away at a bloc.
The traditional thinking was described by political scientists Earl and Merle Black in their 1987 work, The Transformation of Southern Politics.
``Because most black votes go to Democrats, the advent of black voting has contributed to slightly different campaign styles on the part of Democratic and Republican candidates,'' they wrote.
For Democrats, ``the essential task is to combine virtually all of the black vote with enough of the white vote to produce a majority,'' they said. To their progressive themes, successful Southern Democrats add enough conservative ones to capture a substantial white minority.
Meanwhile, Republican candidates ``typically require landslide white majorities since they cannot depend upon any sizable contribution from blacks,'' they wrote. ``The result is strong identification as a conservative, with the range of winning styles varying between `practical' conservatives and `extreme' or `ideological' conservatives.''
The new realization is that combining 20 percent or so of black voters with a strong white base would give Republicans victory almost every time.
It is a sign of the changing times that GOP leaders, such as Vice-presidential nominee Jack Kemp, who have long made the case for inclusive policies are in the ascendancy.
This is healthy for the nation in general and African-Americans, in particular. Take Allen's concentration on urban policy, for instance. The debate can continue, long and loud, over whether the best solutions to poverty are driven by individuals or by government.
But progress is more likely when both sides feel a vested interest in proving that their policies work. MEMO: Ms. Edds is an editorial writer for The Virginian-Pilot. by CNB