Pick One

"In a recent Zogby poll, 59 percent of respondents described themselves as 'fiscally conservative and socially liberal.'"
Kathleen Parker

I don't know if the Zogby poll is accurate or not, but I have been hearing quite a bit recently about a growing sector of the population that is in favor of fiscal restraint and small government, and frankly, doesn't give a damn about what other people do in their bedrooms. While I've heard such people described as "socially progressive," I think that "socially apathetic but turned off by invariably hypocritical social reactionaries" is likely a more apt description. Interestingly enough, this points to a certain disconnect between social and fiscal policy that the political establishment is trying to work their way around, without actually acknowledging. The disconnect always struck me as a huge one within the Republican party, where social conservatives tended to look for blatantly statist solutions to the "moral failings" of their peers. On the other hand, the Democrats, while they are socially liberal, sometimes to a fault, seem to have never seen a spending plan they didn't like.

It seems to be that whichever party reorganizes to fit the new demographic the best could be in for a long and productive majority.