In many respects, the agenda promoted by Republicans at the state level gives the lie to the arguments presented last year by the Growth and Opportunity Project. The project, an initiative of the Republican National Committee, called for a more welcoming approach to Hispanics and African-Americans and for increased tolerance and less ideological rigidity across the board. The Goproject report warned that voters increasingly see the Republican Party as “‘scary,’ ‘narrow-minded’ and ‘out of touch’ and a party of ‘stuffy old men.’ ”

The election on Nov. 4 offers Democrats an opportunity to end Republican Party domination in as many as five states by defeating incumbent governors in Pennsylvania, Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan and Georgia…

The current Republican strategy has all the characteristics of a holding action – a finger-in-the-dike approach to the demographic growth of pro-Democratic minorities and the relative decline of pro-Republican whites. The Republican tactics may prove successful in the short term, serving their interests as quickly as they can before the new demographics take hold and perhaps giving the party time to adjust before whites lose their majority status.

In the future, the Republican Party will confront two issues: does it have the flexibility to change direction when its current tactics no longer work, and will Hispanics and other constituencies treat such a change in direction as credible?