Thomas Frank got a lot of attention a few years ago for his book What’s the Matter With Kansas, in which he wondered why lower-income voters would back candidates who offered them little in the way of expanded government services. Frank and a host of liberal analysts found it astounding that so many Americans would vote against their perceived economic interests, and instead vote their cultural sensibilities. As far as they could tell, these bitter voters were clinging to guns, religion, and antipathy toward foreigners (to borrow a phrase). But today Mark Penn–writing in the Politico–reports that the middle-income voters of Kansas may not be the only ones voting against their economic interests. Apparently affluent voters backed Barack Obama–despite the fact that he promises to raise their taxes:
Don’t hold your breath waiting for What’s the Matter With the Top 5%. It’s apparently understandable that educated and cosmopolitan voters regard other issues as more important than the personal bottom line. It’s only the working voters of middle America whose votes ought to be predetermined.
