Who are the independents and what DO they care about?

Fifty years ago, independents tended primarily to be younger voters who hadn't yet made up their mind which party to support. Thirty years ago, in the wake of the civil rights revolution, many independents were the former white Southern Democrats who had begun to vote Republican in federal elections, but were still unwilling, due to the legacy of the Civil War, to identify themselves as "Republicans." These voters still exist in the rural and small town South, but in the rest of the country, two new types of independents predominate.

In the Northeast, Midwest, and Pacific rim states, independents tend to be white, younger on average than the typical partisan voters, and middle class. They live primarily in cities and suburbs. They think of themselves as "moderates" or "centrists" who are to the right of the national Democrats and to the left of the national GOP. They are skeptical about "big government" and "big labour," but supportive of government environmental and consumer regulation. They are opposed to the religious right's social conservatism and laissez-faire economic policies of conservative Republicans. Unlike the neo-conservatives, they have little enthusiasm for overseas military adventures. Independents in the Southwest and Mountain states are equally distrustful of the religious right and neoconservatives, but are more strictly libertarian on economics and on gun rights.

What all these independents share, however, is skepticism about the two party system itself.

To the indies, being post-partisan IS the new partisan.

If Obama can keep turning out young and indie voters like he did last night, a realignment is under way. All the old categories will be pulled apart and put back together in a different way. Conservative, progressive, etc become meaningless. All it looks like is new vs old right now, but that's because it's unfamiliar and the new categories are still in flux.

but I am pretty sure Klein has never heard of me)

ITA if Obama can control it, then that could work in our favor even if it's impossible to stomach (I don't really read Klein, Brooks, Sullivan anyway).  If he can't control it, then there's a real danger these wankers will destroy his presidency.

Civility is not all he has to offer. Let's hear him out. This next debate should be interesting to say the least. While i'm hear altough this is off topic Edwards as bad cop to Obama's good has managed to somewhat level the field. Contrary to the media Edwards is not dead yet.