Manufacturing Jobs for the GOP

As pre-November primaries come to an end, inquiring political minds will be asking Americans, “What is the singularly most important issue that will drive you to vote this year?”

Almost certainly, the answer will be “jobs.”

Republican proposals to reduce taxes, regulation and government to stimulate growth are right on the money.  But they still won’t overcome one of the GOP’s most serious problems – its post-Reagan divorce from “the working man.”

In April, a bi-partisan poll was released by the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) measuring support by GOP and Tea Party voters for American manufacturing as an agent of job growth.  The results will come as a surprise to no one – except, perhaps, elected Republicans.

Millions of Americans associated with manufacturing have long felt ignored by the Republican Party for many reasons — primarily Democrats’ strong union ties.  But that paradigm could shift in 2010 based on current political trends.

Of the 37 Governors’ mansions currently in play, nineteen are held by Democrats and 18 by Republicans.  Four states – Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan – are big losers in the manufacturing employment race to the bottom and are expected to be swing or trending states in the 2012 Presidential contest.

Since 2000, Michigan lost 434,000 manufacturing jobs; Ohio, 392,000; and 291,000 in Pennsylvania.  Massachusetts, America’s original factory state, shed 150,000.

In these key states the current governor is a Democrat, yet the nation’s top political prognosticators are listing them as “toss up” or “leaning Republican.” Republicans could pick up four to seven governorships overall.

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