Washington, Jan 23: Polls suggest that the majority of Americans will blame either the
Republican Party (GOP) or President Trump for the government shutdown that
began on Friday night — and millennial voters are the generation most likely to
do so.
It is yet another example of the disconnect between the GOP
--the Republican Party and millennials, according to a Euronews report.
Party leaders need to put their heads together and come up with a real plan and real policies, aimed at tackling the issues that matter to young voters, and not just rhetoric. Should they fail to do so, the looming demographic crisis that the party faces will become more of a difficult reality at the polls.
As as the gulf between the Republican Party and millennials widens — and all the available polling shows that it is widening — Democrats (and not third parties) will reap the rewards. They did so in 2017 in Virginia, Alabama and a host of state and local races and, barring a significant change in public perception of the GOP, they will see gains at both the local and national levels in 2018.
The question is not if, but when the Republican Party’s leaders will remove their heads from the sand and finally address the problem the party has with millennial voters.
The millennial vote in particular is a primary reason why many Republicans are already privately conceding an election that is just under 10 months away. To the majority of millennials, the GOP is simply the party of the crusty old white guy. and, unless the party starts to pay attention to the concerns of my generation, they may lose us (and any hope of achieving legislative majorities) for decades to come. Failure to do so will result in electoral disaster.
For the past few years, several of younger Republicans have warned that the party was rapidly approaching a demographic crisis: Millennials — people born between 1981 and 1997 — are the largest generation in the United States, and they are simply not buying what the Republicans are selling.
The GOP brand is severely tarnished among this entire generation of Americans, as a paltry one in five millennials identify with the GOP or conservative values. They perceived as waging a "War on Women" because of GOP policies regarding the right to life and outlandish figures like former Rep Todd Akin who make ridiculous statements that a woman's body can't get pregnant in a case of "legitimate rape." At the same time, millennials have bought into the idea, driven by Democrats, that it cares about the uber-wealthy and corporations more than it does the average American and minorities. (The recent tax reform didn't help that perception.)
So it's not surprising that a recent NBC News/GenForward survey found that 71 percent of millennials believe that the Republican Party "does not care about people like me." The same survey found that a majority of millennials believe that the Democratic Party does care about them. Even more worrisome is what is happening among millennials and younger people who do identify as Republicans: The same survey revealed that the majority of millennial Republicans are soft supporters, with 54 percent responding that they are "not a very strong Republican."
The erosion of young Republicans and the alienation of millennials can be reversed, but only if Republicans are prepared to take strong and decisive action, as well as demonstrate that we are able to govern as the adults in the room — something that millennials expect out of our leaders.
Americans, including millennials, hold a combined $1.3 trillion worth of student debt, and 34 percent more people in in 2011 were likely to have taken out students loans than in 1989. The average cumulative amount borrowed also increased by more than 72 percent in the same period; 63 percent of millennials hold over $10,000 in student debt. (By comparison, the cumulative credit card debt in America, which is the highest ever, is only $1.021 trillion.) Student debt negatively impacts women more than men, as they hold about two-thirds of the total debt even as pay inequity causes it to take longer for women to pay off the same amount of debt as a man.
The Republican Party, however, has barely talked about how to fix this problem. Instead, it takes to Twitter to mock those who do and are only further alienating themselves with millennials. UNI
Party leaders need to put their heads together and come up with a real plan and real policies, aimed at tackling the issues that matter to young voters, and not just rhetoric. Should they fail to do so, the looming demographic crisis that the party faces will become more of a difficult reality at the polls.
As as the gulf between the Republican Party and millennials widens — and all the available polling shows that it is widening — Democrats (and not third parties) will reap the rewards. They did so in 2017 in Virginia, Alabama and a host of state and local races and, barring a significant change in public perception of the GOP, they will see gains at both the local and national levels in 2018.
The question is not if, but when the Republican Party’s leaders will remove their heads from the sand and finally address the problem the party has with millennial voters.
The millennial vote in particular is a primary reason why many Republicans are already privately conceding an election that is just under 10 months away. To the majority of millennials, the GOP is simply the party of the crusty old white guy. and, unless the party starts to pay attention to the concerns of my generation, they may lose us (and any hope of achieving legislative majorities) for decades to come. Failure to do so will result in electoral disaster.
For the past few years, several of younger Republicans have warned that the party was rapidly approaching a demographic crisis: Millennials — people born between 1981 and 1997 — are the largest generation in the United States, and they are simply not buying what the Republicans are selling.
The GOP brand is severely tarnished among this entire generation of Americans, as a paltry one in five millennials identify with the GOP or conservative values. They perceived as waging a "War on Women" because of GOP policies regarding the right to life and outlandish figures like former Rep Todd Akin who make ridiculous statements that a woman's body can't get pregnant in a case of "legitimate rape." At the same time, millennials have bought into the idea, driven by Democrats, that it cares about the uber-wealthy and corporations more than it does the average American and minorities. (The recent tax reform didn't help that perception.)
So it's not surprising that a recent NBC News/GenForward survey found that 71 percent of millennials believe that the Republican Party "does not care about people like me." The same survey found that a majority of millennials believe that the Democratic Party does care about them. Even more worrisome is what is happening among millennials and younger people who do identify as Republicans: The same survey revealed that the majority of millennial Republicans are soft supporters, with 54 percent responding that they are "not a very strong Republican."
The erosion of young Republicans and the alienation of millennials can be reversed, but only if Republicans are prepared to take strong and decisive action, as well as demonstrate that we are able to govern as the adults in the room — something that millennials expect out of our leaders.
Americans, including millennials, hold a combined $1.3 trillion worth of student debt, and 34 percent more people in in 2011 were likely to have taken out students loans than in 1989. The average cumulative amount borrowed also increased by more than 72 percent in the same period; 63 percent of millennials hold over $10,000 in student debt. (By comparison, the cumulative credit card debt in America, which is the highest ever, is only $1.021 trillion.) Student debt negatively impacts women more than men, as they hold about two-thirds of the total debt even as pay inequity causes it to take longer for women to pay off the same amount of debt as a man.
The Republican Party, however, has barely talked about how to fix this problem. Instead, it takes to Twitter to mock those who do and are only further alienating themselves with millennials. UNI
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