Thinking about the WaPo/ABC polling numbers in the blog post below, I had a sad insight. Suppose the Republican mindset has evolved in the following way.
In 2006, we weren't entirely happy with Bush but could shrug it off. On balance he was ok if not great.
In 2008, we weren't happy with the Obama win but could understand how the electorate might want to give a person of color a chance. We hoped he'd do well.
However, in 2012, it has been clear that President Obama has done a poor job for four years, pursued unpopular policies. Yet the electorate still reelects him; this is an entirely different situation.
I believe many Republicans fear the U.S. has become a place whose values they no longer share. We worry that, while we were busy having a good time, the U.S. has become Europe 2.0.
It seems we've become a social welfare state with huge debts and much of the population on some kind of government payment, either paycheck or dole. The "takers" have us outnumbered. It's sad if this perception is accurate.
