> CB: They reorganized pretty fast , since they won the presidential
> election
> in '68.
I don't think that that was the real point at which the GOP showed new strength (except in its nascent Southern strategy). Remember that a lot of the swing vote was afraid of the growing strength of the left (especially after the Chicago unpleasantness of the Democratic convention), Humphrey was not a strong candidate (and alienated most of the left wing of his own party), and a lot of the voting public bought Nixon's line that he had a "secret plan" to end the war. So I think that 1968 was an exceptional year. After Tricky Dick had to resign in disgrace, the GOP didn't get back to the White House until Reagan in 1980 (again, against a very unpopular Democratic candidate), and it was really during Reagan's reign that the Republicans consolidated their power. So the Republican come-back took 16 years, from '64 to '80, and I would imagine that the Democrats will take about that long, too, if they're lucky and play their cards right. Therefore, they probably won't be a serious political force until 2020. I hope I live that long.
Jon Johanning // jjohanning at igc.org _____________________________ Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read. - Groucho Marx