Affirmative action for blacks, you mean? No, he seems to think Appalachians are okay with that. It’s affirmative action for all the other groups that have got them on the defensive. I honestly have no idea what to make of this. On the one hand, it feels like he’s offering a bitter/clingy read on poor rural white Democrats; on the other, it sounds like he thinks affirmative action’s gone too far himself. Or maybe not far enough. Follow the link and you’ll see why this smells like him reading a pet theory into exit poll data that doesn’t necessarily support it, all in the service of avoiding having to take sides between two groups he’s part of: The Obama camp, which is failing to win white rural voters, and the Scots-Irish, who are failing to climb aboard the Hopenchange Express.

Since we’re tossing out theories without regard for empirical evidence, how about the possibility that it doesn’t have jack to do with affirmative action, especially since racially homogeneous communities like Appalachians logically shouldn’t worry too much about minorities taking opportunities from them? Just maybe, it’s because they’re more culturally conservative than most Democrats and find something off-putting about Obama. Scroll down to the very end here and note the breakdown on the last two questions. 86-10.