Phoenix is America's least educated, least literate major metro area. Arizona is a case study for What's the Matter With Kansas? author Thomas Frank. Low information voters caught up in an economy that has been withering for decades, stuck in low-wage jobs, seeing their future become more bleak need someone to blame. Because of the effectiveness of the "conservative" machine, they never vote against the right-wing, corporate oligarchy policies that cause their plight. They don't go after the Anglo elite that has created Arizona's basket-case economy. They seem incapable of connecting the state's problems to the "conservatives" that have been in power for decades. Instead, they blame "liberals," the other, and in Arizona, "the Mexicans." It's pointless to attempt to engage them in the complexities of the immigration issue. What part of illegal don't you understand??
Additionally, Arizona seems to be more and more a case of the Big Sort, with like-minded (white) people gathering there, especially retirees, while progressives are ever more marginalized. In recent years, the Arizona Republican Party has been purged of its historic soul, as has happened to the GOP around the country; the tea party is merely the latest incarnation of this ever-more-nihilistic ideological (and theocratic) trend. Barry Goldwater's party has lost all its virtues, while its vices have been taken to steroidal extremes. Also, as commenter Soleri has pointed out, the urban form of Phoenix encourages the kind of disconnectedness that plays to Republicans. In any event, Arizona politics is usually small ball, primaries and even general elections that are decided by a small turnout, where the intense enthusiasm of the white-right and tea party will be decisive. Arizona lacks any leftward balance to the extreme right, and neither the left nor the center have foot soldiers to offset the Mormon vote. As for Hispanics, they tend to have very low turnout. Nationally, Hispanic citizens may be moving away from President Obama, and by extension most Democrats, because of what is seen as a cowardly response to immigration.
"As I've written, the bill was never intended to shut down illegal immigration — the state economy and not a few of the businesses that support the white-right would collapse. It is a brilliant tactic, like guns, God, gays and abortion — a faux existential threat that must never be really solved because it is so politically profitable. If no small dose of cruelty and hypocrisy are involved welcome to Arizona." - Rogue Columnist
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