Will the GOP Wake Up to the Rise of Millenials?

As someone who has been involved in politics for more than 20 years and who grew up in a family where political involvement was the norm, I continue to be amazed by the apparent death wish of today's Republican Party.  Despite sweeping demographic changes sweeping the nation to the coming of age of younger voters, the party remains obsessed with pandering to - if not out right prostituting itself - to a demographic that is shrinking: aging white conservative Christians who are anti-gay, anti-minorities of every stripe, and embrace a toxic form of religion that is being increasingly abandoned by younger generations.  If one has any plan for long time party longevity, the course being pursued is a veritable form of suicide.  A piece in Politico looks at the GOP's apparent death wish and need to embrace younger voters, especially so-called millennials.  Here are excerpts:

Some Republicans are surprised by the sudden increase in discussions over the issue of same-sex couples’ freedom to marry. This debate comes as no surprise to the generation of millennials who, like me, were born between the early 1980s and early 2000s. The debate over same-sex marriage has shined a light on the need for the Republican Party to be mindful of the rise of these Republican millennials.

Support levels for the freedom to marry are at commanding new highs in public opinion, and the shift is accelerating. While I don’t predict a near-term shift in the official Republican platform, the tide has clearly turned. The rise of a new generation of millennial Republicans is, of course, inevitable, and with it come their attitudes on these issues. From those running for office in local and state legislative races to those crunching polling numbers for presidential candidates, younger Republicans are an important part of a generation that is largely supportive of equal rights for all.

Holding true to millennial attributes of exuding confidence and questioning outdated assumptions, these Americans believe that freedom means freedom for everyone. These individuals have friends and family members who are gay and simply don’t understand a government-sanctioned classification that treats them differently.

Nearly every recent public poll has shown extraordinarily high and growing support for freedom to marry among younger voters. A recent survey by ABC News/Washington Post stands out. TargetPoint’s survey revealed that 64 percent of evangelical millennials support the freedom to marry.

By some estimates, millennials now outnumber baby boomers by roughly 20 million. As a result, millennials will play an increasingly larger role at the ballot box each passing year. This generation will soon take the reins of businesses, associations, government and the political campaigns to elect our leaders — many of whom will be from their own millennial ranks.

The Republican Party is evolving with the changing generations, but we younger Republicans are often impatient. In times like these, this impatience is warranted. The Republican Party’s image as noninclusive and elitist, while wholly untrue, nevertheless gets reinforced every time a leading, and typically baby boomer, GOP leader publicly opposes the freedom to marry.

The millennial generation is a conservative generation that believes in less government, free-market values and equality. Above all, we believe in freedom — for everyone

Not good or welcome news for Christofascists like Tony Perkins and those who enrich themselves by disseminating anti-gay hate and working to block marriage equality such as Maggie Gallagher and Brian Brown.