{"product_id":"whistling-past-dixie-how-democrats-can-win-without-the-south-9780743290166","title":"Whistling Past Dixie: How Democrats Can Win Without the South","description":"\u003cb\u003eTwo generations ago Kevin Phillips challenged Republicans to envision a southern-based national majority. In \u003ci\u003eWhistling Past Dixie\u003c\/i\u003e, Tom Schaller issues an equally transformative challenge to Democrats: Build a winning coalition outside the South.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe South is no longer the swing region in American politics--it has swung to the Republicans.\u003c\/b\u003e Most of the South is beyond the Democrats' reach, and what remains is moving steadily into the Republican column. The twin effects of race and religion produce a socially conservative, electorally hostile environment for most Democratic candidates. What's wrong with Kansas is even more wrong in the South, where cultural issues matter most to voters. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eYet far too many politicians and pundits still subscribe to the idea that Democrats must recapture the South. This southern nostalgia goes beyond sentimentality: It is a dangerously self-destructive form of political myopia which, uncorrected, will only relegate the Democrats to minority-party status for a generation. The notion that Democrats should pin their hopes for revival on the tail of a southern donkey is no less absurd than witnessing the children's variant of the party game, for both involve desperate attempts to hit elusive targets while wandering around blindfolded. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMeanwhile, political attitudes and demographic changes in other parts of the country are more favorable to Democratic messages and messengers. The Midwest and Southwest are the nation's most competitive regions. There are opportunities to expand Democratic margins in the Mountain red states while consolidating control over the reliably blue northeastern and Pacific coast states. Before dreaming of fortynine-state presidential landslides like those of Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, the Democrats ought to first figure out how to win twenty-nine states. And that means capturing Arizona--or even Alaska--before targeting Alabama. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRepublicans cannot win without the South, Schaller argues, but they also can't win with the South \u003ci\u003ealone\u003c\/i\u003e. Much as Democrats were confined to the South for decades prior to the New Deal, the Democrats should South but little else. After winning and governing successfully elsewhere, Democrats can then present their record of achievement to the South--the nation's most conservative region, but one that is steadily assimilating with the politics of the rest of America and, therefore, will become more competitive in the future. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBut for now, Democrats must put strategy ahead of sentimentality. To form a new and enduring majority coalition, they must whistle past their electoral graveyard. They must whistle past Dixie.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Thomas F. Schaller\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Simon \u0026amp; Schuster\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/01\/2008\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 352\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.85lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.16h x 6.22w x 0.86d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780743290166\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/27\/2008 pg. 20\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSchaller, Thomas F.:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003cb\u003eThomas F. Schaller\u003c\/b\u003e is associate professor of political science at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and coauthor of \u003ci\u003eDevolution and Black State Legislators\u003c\/i\u003e. A columnist for \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Examiner\u003c\/i\u003e, Schaller has written for \u003ci\u003eThe American Prospect, The Baltimore Sun, The Boston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e, the \u003ci\u003eLos Angeles Times, Salon\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e, and has appeared on National Public Radio and C-SPAN television. He lives in Washington, DC.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Simon \u0026 Schuster","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":40117444116595,"sku":"9.78E+12","price":23.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/products\/img_c7185fe3-6f21-4eb6-baf8-3698446820a3.jpg?v=1653576044","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/whistling-past-dixie-how-democrats-can-win-without-the-south-9780743290166","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}