Cowboy Conservatism Summary

In Cowboy Conservatism, we get to take a look at the rise of conservatism in Texas and the many events that led to the shift from Democratic Texas to a more right wing centered Texas. The events in the book including the election of LBJ, the assassination of Kennedy, and the election of Ronald Reagan, are some of the major events that helped shape Texas into what it is today. For a century after Reconstruction, the Democratic Party enjoyed electoral dominance on all levels of state government and in the Lone Star State's representation in the national government. Democrats held a lock on state politics and government throughout the first half of the twentieth century. But beneath the surface the party's dominance was crumbling. Political
For the first time since the election of 1932, American voters were given a chance to choose a President from two candidates who were completely opposite in their ideology and personality. Incumbent candidates usually get good coverage if they are running for re-election in a time when the economy is good, and this time was no exception. Part of the good coverage President Johnson received can be explained by the good economy and the lingering sympathy the press and the people still felt for the passing of President Kennedy. It also helped that he faced a very weak candidate that came from a divided party. From the start, Senator Goldwater had a difficult task in trying to oust a popular President in a good economy: What made his task almost impossible was that his extreme right wing ideology alienated the more moderate wing of the party. As we can learn from history, a divided party usually loses an election because a portion of their supporters would choose to stay home rather than vote for the candidate they do not like. Senator Goldwater's refusal to moderate his view alienated the moderate Republicans. Although many Texans supported Goldwaters views on issues, it was hard for most Texans to go against one of their own in Johnson. Johnson made sure that people thought of Goldwater as an extremist in his views, which actually worked very