4)During the last half-century, the Solid Democratic South has disappeared and a more competitive, perhaps Re
485565
I live in the south, so I know a thing or two about this.\nfor a long time, people in the south were more rural and were usually poorer than people in new england. these are the people Democrats feed off of. you're poor, you're the little guy, and it's all the GOP's fault.\nbut the Democratic party has gone to the left in the last 50 years. a lot of conservative Democrats are shying away from abortion, environmentalism, and being soft on terror.\nrace hasn't really changed it. African Americans still vote about 90% Democratic, no matter where they live.\nI hope this is enough to get you started. for more information, check out the DNC and GOP websites.
724657
Depends upon what you mean by the "fall" of the US. If you mean a departure from the Representative Republic that the Constitution and was based upon.....Quite possibly. The people of this nation were once a very independent and self reliant people. Now, with current politics as they are and politicians "buying" the vote with social welfare programs and the generalize apathy from the public I could easily see it happening. Without a strong 3rd party political party, I do not see a change from the course we are on.
119650
Depends on the region of US.  The South was openly segregated through the '60's.  That's part of what the civil rights movement was about.
220196
Not as popular as before, but a lot of things are making a comeback.
639041
Southern states there is inbreeding which makes for mental defect, we in the north are working, honest people that know that the Repuglicans are no more moral or upright then the democrats, but the repuglicans favor big business in every legislation, the tax cut for the very rich being an example. The democrats tend to want to help the poor and middle class. Like raising the minimum wages and such.
507138
in general no democracy has ever lasted very long,  America was formed to be a republic, where the need of the government and all people held an importance.\n\nNow that America is switching thier government to a more pure democractic system,  This normally allows for corruption and control by fringe groups ( which we see happening)  It weakens a nation to such a point that there is either a military or civil revolt or the country is taken over by another nation.
186416
Much like G.W. Bush, Lincoln's election was a bit of a controversy. The South had in the past benefited from political division in the North but in this election the Democratic party (not the exact same as today's, but relatively similar) was split and thus Southern votes were split. Lincoln, a Republican (again, not the same as modern Republicans, but relatively similar), won because his opposition was not unified.
46184
ND is starting to turn around.  They are great compared to the last few years, but they still have a ways to go.
1060193
I really don't know,\n\nThere is a tendency toward increase a regional  political and stability by reducing economic regional difference.
302365
More likely the subservience of people's interests to corporate interests signals the decline of America.
941576
No, actually B. B, the move to the center will help the country, I see a future now and the last 6 years I saw none. Just more war and more restrictions of our freedoms. I think this will be guarded better with the moderate democrats then it was with the moderate repuglicans.
848247
Things haven't change a bit sinse then compared to 50's and 60's esp during the segregation period. Georgia, is the most racist state I know, and mississippi too. I think it's really racist everywhere, things havent changed, martin king did have a dream, that all whites and black would be sitting at the table together, well that dream did come true, because we do have alot of interracial marriages more than we did back in the day. I think now statistically, even the "majority" will disagree with this. but minorities are now becoming the majoritities....
1104021
It has tempered its leftist views from the 60's and 70's and many other institutions have more then caught up to its left wing views.  But its still a leader in left wing discourse.
169671
It was something that was picked by the television media here in the US during the last few natioanl elections. If you go back a number of years ago it was the opposite on TV.\nNow that the phrases "red states" and "blue states" have become a part of our vocabluary I doubt we'll see the colors change again any time soon.
900877
To me, it goes back to the Civil War, when the Confederacy was red and the Union was blue. In other words, Republicans(today, even though roles were reversed back then) are in many ways still like the Confederacy, pretty much all the states that were in the Confederacy are still Republican.
888313
of course it was. That pyrrhic victory (or however the hell you spell it) was evident in the current election that just took place. The republicans use to dominate the senate and house. now the democrats have swooped in and taken it back because the american people has seen how inefficient the country has become under a republican regime. a new "counterculture" has emerged that is probably going to pull this country out ofa rut and bring it into the 21st century.
744849
No and no.\n\nFor several decades, most African Americans have been Democrats, and tend to vote democratic. There are Republican African Americans, but they are a minority within their ethnicity.\n\nUntil the 60's or so, most white southerners were Democrat (AKA "Dixiecrats") and black southerners were Republican -- when they were allowed to register and vote at all. This was in reaction to Lincoln's having been a Republican. \n\nSince elected Democrats, and the Democratic party tended to favor civil rights and racial equality, southern Blacks switched parties, and segregationists switched to Republian (over the next several decades).\n\nBy no means are all Caucasions Republicans. Not even close.\n\nMembers of unions long tended to be Democrats, and the split was more along economic class lines.\n\nNow the biggest split seems to be that of rural vs. urban -- with city dwellers voting Democrat, and those in sparsely-populated areas voting Republican.\n\nBut these are general trends; there have always been exceptions.\n\nRemember, African Americans are only about 12% of the US population -- if the two parties represented those two races, Democrats would be a minor party.