In the United States, for the last four decades, from Richard Nixon to Ronald Reagan through the two Bush Presidencies, the Republican Party won the White House by amassing large margins among white voters (Lizza.) The state of Texas has been reliably Republican since the 1970s and there are various elements to Texas political culture that can be narrowed down to three essential ideological trends: economic liberalism, or faith in the free market economy, social conservatism, or favoring traditional values and moralism, and populism, or promoting the rights and worthiness of ordinary people (Texas Political Culture.) As a result, the dominant political mood in Texas favors low taxes, minimal government services, and policies that are pro-business. This phenomenon is not static, however, since changing demographics in the state are causing changes in the profile of Texas in reference to electoral politics, among other major issues. This paper will explore different perspectives about the changing demographics of Texas, and where they might lead the state politically, and will present a variety of viewpoints regarding this complex subject.
The political future of Texas has been widely debated since the 2012 election of Pres. Barack Obama, since the state has always played a significant role in impacting national elections. Nationally, there was uneven support among minority voters in favor of the president and Democrats, and as a result there has been an increasing interest in the Hispanic population growth in Texas (Lawrence.) The speculation regards how the changing complexion of Texas voters will influence the political process, with political pundits broadly predicting that since the Latino population typically votes for Democr...
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...mographic change has forced a transformation in the political world because both of the two major political parties have an incentive to court this population since their success in doing so will play a tremendous role in their ability to win future elections.
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Sharpless tells how life in the city became more convenient due to easier access to electricity and running water. Women began moving into town not just for personal but economical and political reasons. Politics held a great responsibility in modernizing Texas. As Buenger emphasizes throughout his book “The Path to a Modern South” the importance of politics and how it changed culture is ultimately what set Texas apart from the rest of the southern states. By the 1920’s politics had changed dramatically in Texas, women were allowed to vote almost 2 years before any other state in America.
Molly Ivins was an author and political commentator, who has gained recognition for her ability to use satire and irony to discuss serious topics and messages. In Molly Ivins essay, “Is Texas America,” she ponders about unsuccessfully trying to “…explode the myths about Texas” during her journalist career (Ivins 782). Although Ivan discusses Texas as a massive and diverse state, and how the true Texas stereotype cannot be generalized and summed up into one area or type of Texan. However, throughout her article Ivins still continues to emphasize on a general stereotype of a white Republican male. Even though Ivins failed to deeply analyze the topics she discusses, such as homophobia, racism, and Texas identification, there are sources that do
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The people of Texas are diverse and carry their “big can-do attitudes and accents” (Pearson); making Texas a bigger than life state. The political culture of Texas is impacted by two different subgroups of individualistic and traditionalistic characteristics. The combination of traditionalism and individualism has had a huge impact on the state and Texas’ seven different constitutions. The shift in power between 1827 and 1876 has impacted the political diversity Texas has today. Looking at the specifics of these subcultures, the traditionalists believe government should benefit the wealthy and powerful, and that government services must be limited.
During Indiana's 2008 General Election." Journal Of Law & Politics 25.3 (2009): 329-373. ContentSelect Research Navigator. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.
...ds, William. <a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=pcZ8g7DjAzA&offerid=6424&type=2&subid=0&url=http%253A//search.borders.com/fcgi-bin/db2www/search/search.d2w/Details%253F%2526mediaType%253DBook%2526prodID%253D3901535" >Political Attitudes in the Nation & the States<IMG border=0 alt=icon width=1 height=1 src="http://ad.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/show?id=pcZ8g7DjAzA&bids=6424&type=2&subid=0" >. University North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Institute for Research in Social Science. 1974Mulcahy, Kevin and Katz, Richard. <a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/stat?id=pcZ8g7DjAzA&offerid=6424&type=2&subid=0&url=http%253A//search.borders.com/fcgi-bin/db2www/search/search.d2w/Details%253F%2526mediaType%253DBook%2526prodID%253D14579075" >America Votes: What You Should Know About Elections Today<IMG border=0 alt=icon width=1 height=1 src="http://ad.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/show?id=pcZ8g7DjAzA&bids=6424&type=2&subid=0" >. New Jersey, Prentice Hall Inc. 1976.U.S. News & World Report Politics Inside and Out Washington D.C., U.S. News and World Report. 1970
As the 47th governor of Texas, he has and continues to put into motion many new acts and laws that have created a more prosperous Texas. A more prosperous Texas includes the creation of more jobs, a fair legal system, and more adept schools as well as low taxes for citizens and accordingly, low state government spending. These tough economic practices have also been proven through national statistics. According to many s...
The funding of public education has long been an issue for the state government of Texas. Starting before Texas was even a state, public education funding was at the forefront of politicians’ minds. In 1836, one of the reasons Anglo-Texans wanted to become independent from Mexico was Mexico’s lack of a public school system (An Overview of the History of Public Education in Texas, 2016). This drove the desire of President Mirabeau B. Lamar of the Republic of Texas to create legislation that would grant public schools land (A Brief History of Public Education, n.d.). This act set aside four leagues of land per county for the use of free education centers and thus began the funding of public education by the state government (An Overview of the History of Public Education in Texas, 2016). In the last 177 years, the Texas Legislature and the Texas Education Agency have created numerous acts and laws regarding the funding of education, but it has been in the last 50 years that this topic has become highly contested, resulting in several lawsuits and endless efforts (by the school districts) to equalize the distribution of funds to Texas school districts (Texas School Finance History, n.d.). In sum, the complex issues and policies that surround the funding of public education are derived from a combination of the legislature, bureaucratic agencies, and local governments in the form of school districts.
This basis for this research requires further explanation. The rationale for excluding Senators from this study and for narrowing the focus exclusively to black House members reflects the difference in representation between House members and Senators. By studying House districts comprised of a smaller electorate, one can draw important conclusions about the constituency characteristics and the subsequent...
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Texas Politics. "5.3 Education." Texas Politics - Political Economy. Liberal Arts Instructional Technology Services, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 22 Jan. 2014. .
The foundation of identity in Texas is as much rhetorical as it is reality. Texas is a vast landscape comprised of almost every topographical variation found on earth; however, it is also a set of beliefs from which Texans perceive the world around them. Texans view themselves as ‘other’, enthusiastically endorsing notions that they are descendants of mythological figures – both exotic and heroic in form and action. Indeed, the rhetoric of Texas boasts many things: rugged individualism mixed with unwavering loyalty to family and friends, love of land and power, admiration for hard work and courage, biblical faith and generosity combined with utter disdain for rules dictated by outsiders. For better or worse, the rhetoric of Texas is part of its heritage and serves as the foundation of
Preston, Julia. "State Lawmakers Outline Plans to End Birthright Citizenship, Drawing Outcry." Nytimes.com. The New York Times, 5 Jan. 2011. Web. 4 Mar. 2011. .
Throughout the United States and elsewhere in the world it is possible to see that societies are undergoing processes of demographic transformation. In many cases this transformation comprises either an ageing or a rejuvenation of society. However, there are also cases in which this transformation also includes an ethnic dimension. In the state of California, ethnic minorities have for years threatened the state’s white plurality. In fact, the latest information released by the federal government confirmed that there are now living more Latinos in the state of California than there are Whites (Panzar, 2015). The loss of White plurality owes to the fact that other ethnicities have grown at faster rates, and it not irrational
In my lifetime it has never been a question what side of the poll Texas has been on. Now it seems that Texas is undecided and could be a big part of the way this election goes with our 38 electoral votes the second by any state and California is democratic for the most part. Those 38 votes could be the game changer in this election, because it seems this election could go either way. This last debate will be a deciding factor in my opinion. Our state could be deciding to go democratic, because of the high volume of Hispanics in Texas, and Trump is trying to build a wall between Mexico and the United States. Some people view this idea and Trump’s comments on illegal immigration to be racist. This seems like a big reason for Texas to be switching to democratic