Rhino
08-06-2007, 12:21 PM
Young Conservatives Dump Republican Politicians For Columnists, Talk Show Stars
Monday, August 06, 2007
By Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
WASHINGTON — Young conservative activists today are a scrappier and more demanding generation — and that means Republican politicians can no longer expect lockstep support, but instead have to earn allegiance, say several youth organizers.
In fact, many of the high school- and college-age participants at the Young America's Foundation National Conservative Student Conference, held in Washington D.C., last week are brushing off their image as impressionistic and naïve followers. They say they won't be fooled by gimmicky politics or empty campaign promises from Republican leaders and presidential candidates.
"Conservatives have been let down by politicians," said Flagg Youngblood, who works with the Virginia-based YAF. The group is also headquartered at the Reagan Ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Established in 1969, the YAF is widely considered a principal outreach and feeder organization for the conservative political movement that seeks to recruit and mobilize tens of thousands of students each year.
Youngblood became a student member of YAF in the 1990s when Republicans took over Congress. At that time, he recalled, the GOP was assembling an army of supporters to take back the White House and promising to bring limited government and faith-friendly values with them.
Since then, however, "a deviation from the principle" has left young conservatives — as well as many others — with a sense of skepticism and the feeling that promises weren't kept, he said.
"They're asking a lot of questions," Youngblood said of the newest batch of YAF participants. "They're interested in keeping politicians on task."
Participants and organizers at the YAF confab agreed that a new attitude is permeating the ranks. Whereas Republican notables like Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott, R-Miss., and former Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Tex., might have been rock stars among these young activists in the past, they've been replaced by non-politicians — luminaries and provocateurs in the college lecture circuit.
In the new era of shortened news cycles, a seriously divided electorate and declining Republican popularity in Washington, celebrity conservatives hailing from the blogs and conservative talk radio are leading the movement, said Tom Qualtere, who joined the Skidmore Young Republican Assembly as a freshman three years ago.
The "in crowd" now among young conservatives includes columnists Ann Coulter and Michelle Malkin, who have given their cause an edginess and the confidence to take on liberal foes on campus....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,292194,00.html
Monday, August 06, 2007
By Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
WASHINGTON — Young conservative activists today are a scrappier and more demanding generation — and that means Republican politicians can no longer expect lockstep support, but instead have to earn allegiance, say several youth organizers.
In fact, many of the high school- and college-age participants at the Young America's Foundation National Conservative Student Conference, held in Washington D.C., last week are brushing off their image as impressionistic and naïve followers. They say they won't be fooled by gimmicky politics or empty campaign promises from Republican leaders and presidential candidates.
"Conservatives have been let down by politicians," said Flagg Youngblood, who works with the Virginia-based YAF. The group is also headquartered at the Reagan Ranch in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Established in 1969, the YAF is widely considered a principal outreach and feeder organization for the conservative political movement that seeks to recruit and mobilize tens of thousands of students each year.
Youngblood became a student member of YAF in the 1990s when Republicans took over Congress. At that time, he recalled, the GOP was assembling an army of supporters to take back the White House and promising to bring limited government and faith-friendly values with them.
Since then, however, "a deviation from the principle" has left young conservatives — as well as many others — with a sense of skepticism and the feeling that promises weren't kept, he said.
"They're asking a lot of questions," Youngblood said of the newest batch of YAF participants. "They're interested in keeping politicians on task."
Participants and organizers at the YAF confab agreed that a new attitude is permeating the ranks. Whereas Republican notables like Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott, R-Miss., and former Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Tex., might have been rock stars among these young activists in the past, they've been replaced by non-politicians — luminaries and provocateurs in the college lecture circuit.
In the new era of shortened news cycles, a seriously divided electorate and declining Republican popularity in Washington, celebrity conservatives hailing from the blogs and conservative talk radio are leading the movement, said Tom Qualtere, who joined the Skidmore Young Republican Assembly as a freshman three years ago.
The "in crowd" now among young conservatives includes columnists Ann Coulter and Michelle Malkin, who have given their cause an edginess and the confidence to take on liberal foes on campus....http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,292194,00.html