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The Republican Party won the last election in no small part because of its new appeal with working-class voters, a shift that left many in Washington wondering if a sustained political realignment was afoot.
But the economic agenda Republicans are now putting together on Capitol Hill would by and large help rich Americans, all while teeing up cuts to programs that provide health care and food to the poor.
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For some Republicans, pursuing an agenda that cuts taxes and spending is frustrating, given the way the party’s support has changed over time. Such an agenda may have made some political sense back when Republicans received more of their support from rich Americans. Not anymore, said Oren Cass, a founder of the think tank the American Compass and a leading voice in the so-called New Right.
“They have this old script they think they’re supposed to be reading off that says we’re going to cut taxes for high-income families and cut benefits for the poor,” he said. “That was always an incredibly dumb script, but it was one that the Republican Party thought it should be pursuing once upon a time. And now the Republican Party doesn’t think they should be pursuing it, but they’re still blindly wandering forward as if that’s what they’re supposed to do.”
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