Younger voters not particularly scared of the word "socialism"

[mookiemookie]

But it’s not that the youngest voters don’t know what socialism means. It’s that most aren’t scared of it — and find it bizarre that, decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall, a political movement would center itself around opposition to it. The fact that both the tea party and the Republican Party have made vociferous opposition to “socialist’’ policies a key part of their rhetoric helps explain the tepid response among young adults.

Republican strategists see short-term advantages in the tea party movement’s passion. But if conservatives can’t wean themselves off of Cold-War-era rhetoric, they risk alienating an entire generation of young people. The tea party is well on its way to doing just that. A recent New York Times/CBS News survey found that three-quarters of the movement’s supporters were older than 45.

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ed...nt_a_bad_word/

I think the Republican/Tea Party needs to have more of an understanding of demographics. If they're not connecting with younger voters, they're mortgaging their future for short term gains. The anti-immigrant rhetoric isn't going to play well with the Hispanic contingent either - every day they're becoming a larger and larger minority. Interesting times ahead.