One political consequence was that the Deep South was monolithically Democratic for the next century. Historically, then, education was of less importance, and therefore emphasized less, in the South than in the North-a trend that contributed ongoing economic advantages to the North.Īfter the Civil War, Republican carpetbaggers from the North kicked around the defeated South, further widening the economic gap between the two regions. Combined with national policies that conferred economic advantages on the relatively industrialized, higher capitalized North-policies that created some of the friction that led to the Civil War-the South’s economic development lagged.Īs is common in societies based on producing raw commodities, the Old South had an elite that owned the land and employed a poorly educated workforce to plant, tend, and harvest the crops. They focused on producing commodities, whereas the northern states produced more value-added goods, more manufactured goods, more capital-intensive goods. This is significant: They were all slaveholding states. Those nine also happen to be concentrated in the South. Looking at the list of the 10 poorest states, all except Montana are east of (or border on) the Mississippi River. That means they are older states.
Absurd, right? Similarly, we can’t facilely assume that the lower per capita incomes in the 10 poorest states were caused by Republican policies.
What changed in America at that time? Alaska and Hawaii were added to the union in 19, respectively therefore, the erroneous assertion to follow is that we need only expel those two states from the Union to solve our deficit spending problem. On the other hand, only North Carolina voted for Obama in 2008, so in that sense, these states may be leaning Republican.Ī common analytical error is the “post hoc ergo propter hoc” fallacy-“after this, therefore because of this.” For example, chronic federal deficits became chronic in the 1960s. Of these, exactly half-Arkansas, Kentucky, Montana, North Carolina, and West Virginia-have Democratic governors and three have Democratic majorities in the lower house of their legislature, so these state governments can hardly be classified as completely Republican. The poorest states, based on per capita income, are, from first to last: Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, West Virginia, Louisiana, Montana, South Carolina, Kentucky, Alabama, and North Carolina. Let’s examine the 10 poorest states to see if Republicans are to blame for their relative economic standing. If Republican policies have led to the economic stagnation of entire states, whereas Democrats are only responsible for ruining cities, then the Dems might have the stronger campaign talking point. My previous column made the case that Democratic Party policies have induced the impoverishment of America’s poorest cities.