In the 1988 presidential election, Democratic candidate Michael Dukakis lost in his bid for the White House to a Republican named George Bush. Twenty years later, it was another Bush who helped Democratic candidate Barack Obama win where Dukakis faltered, experts said Wednesday.
Dukakis reflected on his party’s victories and moderated a discussion between Harvard political science professor William Mayer and Democratic political analyst and consultant Ruy Teixiera at Northeastern University Wednesday night.
Dukakis opened the discussion by noting the tough electoral math McCain faced against Obama. Both candidates, he said, fought over a few crucial swing states.
‘This election was essentially a five-state election,’ Dukakis said ‘The rest of us could have been in Tahiti and it wouldn’t have mattered.’
Democrat Teixiera, who has predicted the realignment of United States’ voters with the Democratic party for years, emphasized the significance of a rising percentage of minority voters, white college graduates, women and the voters in their 20s and 30s in deciding the outcome of Tuesday’s election.
‘This is the gift that keeps on giving,’ he said, referring to new ‘Millenial’ voters in their 20s and 30s. ‘Partisan identities tend to be sticky and stay as people grow older.’
Teixiera said Hispanic, rather than black voters, ultimately drove the minority vote by voting in significant numbers for Obama rather than McCain.
‘There’s some friction between blacks and Hispanics, but apparently this didn’t affect the votes,’ he said.
According to polls, the general population felt terrorism was the only issue on which Republicans had an upper hand.
Mayer, a Republican, said political disarray and economic hardship played a large role in the elections, leaving Americans dangerously desperate for change.
Mayer criticized the Bush administration and said the choice of George W. Bush as the Republican presidential nominee in 2000 was a mistake for the Republican Party.
‘I don’t mean to sound catty, but I can’t believe anyone who spent time around George Bush could have been bowled over by his intelligence,’ he said. ‘This points to a fundamental weakness in the Republican Party. They don’t take governing seriously enough.’
Mayer disagreed with Texiera’s theory that Obama owed his victory to some dramatic shift in the electorate. Instead, Tuesday’s election ‘was a referendum on the performance of George Bush, and he was found to be lacking,’ Mayer said.
Newton resident Arthur Turner said he appreciated Mayer’s realistic evaluation of his party’s defeat.
‘Bill Mayer was right on about Bush,’ Turner said. ‘He was very honest. It was refreshing, actually.’
When the speakers were asked who they hoped to see Obama choose for his cabinet, Dukakis offered his own opinion.
‘As someone who has picked cabinets, and not just at IKEA, you certainly want diversity,’ he said. ‘Above all, you want people who can do the job.’
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