GOPideas... ideas done right

The preceding post discussed the notion that Republicans should begin to turn their attention away from opposing all government and toward ensuring that citizens demand a return on the investments made by government. Future posts will focus on specific policy areas in which a social contract framework should be used to guide policy --- and outline what Republicans should demand of any government program. However, Republicans must not ignore the "asset gap" --- the notion that predominantly Republican constituencies (older, whiter, more affluent) have considerably more assets at their disposal than other constituencies. This gap helps to explain why seemingly similar demographic groups have different opinions of policy proposals.

The asset gap is commonly discussed as shorthand for the divergence of assets available to affluent individuals and others. Most analyses of the asset gap discuss financial assets, but any analysis of an asset gap should include other factors, such as: educational opportunities, guaranteed pseudo-financial assistance, community support and financial risk mitigation. For example, a child growing up in a family with an income of $50,000, but a paid off home, in a good school district, engaged in the community, with a parent who works for the government and affluent grandparents has a dominant social asset advantage over a child who grows up in a household with a similar income, but without those advantages.

A paid off home and a tenured job with good benefits provides the security that living expenses will not increase dramatically and the family will not be confronted with unemployment. A good school district will ensure access to a quality education, a safe environment and (most likely) a cohort of students focused on college. Affluent family members can also assist later in life: paying college tuition, providing a financial cushion if employment challenges arise, providing funds for a down payment for a house or car. Furthermore, as Nicholas Kristoff points out, Republicans are more engaged in church and charity, which opens additions opportunities to build social assets.

Republicans must address the insecurities that arise due to this asset gap in the context of a social contract policy framework. Acknowledgement of the asset gap will provide Republicans the opportunity to attract support from constituencies who normally ignore Republican policy options because those policy options frequently ignore the realities that have pushed individuals toward Democratic ideas.