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Mike Hembree: Looking for a Democrat

By Mike Hembree - Associate Editor

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Article Rating: 3.3
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In the NASCAR garage area, the only thing harder to find than a muffler is a Democrat.

In case you haven’t noticed, this is a political year. The longest and loudest presidential campaign ever will end in November with the election of the country’s 44th president, and then the national media will move on to more important stories, like how you’re supposed to pay for a gallon of gas.

Most of those guys who do polls of voters say Democrat Barack Obama is slightly ahead of Republican John McCain, but it’s still pretty early – like the 85th lap of a race at Pocono.

Gallup and his buddies don’t do polls in the NASCAR garage, but, if they did, they’d be looking long and hard to locate a Democrat, particularly among the driver corps. This is one thing – maybe the only thing – the NASCAR community has in common with the PGA tour. Pro golfers tend to swing to the far right – and that’s not as in slice.

Kyle Petty might be the closest thing to a Democrat in the garage area. He has shown an attraction to environmental issues over the years, and, if Democrats are generally non-conformists, Petty certainly fits. A devoted book collector, he is perhaps the most well-read person in the garage. Most drivers read only their checkbooks.

Drivers and top-rung NASCAR officials and team owners not only tend to vote Republican, but they also put money in Republican candidates’ war chests. And they don’t always run with winners. The favorite in the garage area for the Republican presidential nomination was former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who attracted donations from Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Casey Mears, Brian France, Rick Hendrick and Darrell Waltrip.

NASCAR President Mike Helton also was a Giuliani financial backer, but he recently kicked in some cash for McCain. Helton has a long list of political contributions, almost all to Republican candidates.

NASCAR insiders also were big backers of President Bush. It’s not certain how they feel about that these days.

All this is to say that it would be a surprise to see Obama campaigning at a NASCAR race weekend between now and November. He might get more boos than Kyle Busch.

A Democrat tried it in 1992. During his successful campaign for the presidency, Bill Clinton made a stop at Darlington Raceway prior to a race. You would have thought an ax murderer had been named grand marshal of the race. Boos rained down on Clinton from the stands, and he was greeted less than enthusiastically in the garage. Mark Martin agreed to be Clinton’s “host” in the garage, perhaps only because both are from Arkansas. That was a stretch.

Virtually everybody who works in the NASCAR garage – particularly the drivers and crew chiefs –  is a politician of sorts. One, however, has made it official.

Shane Martin, who manages the Nationwide and Craftsman Truck Series programs for General Motors, recently won a Republican primary election for the state Senate in South Carolina. He’ll be the only senator in the garage, assuming he wins the general election in November.

Martin will be heavily favored against his Democratic opponent. Voters in the Upstate area of South Carolina, where Martin lives, tend to line up behind Republicans.

Sorta like NASCAR, where the only left turns are on the track.

Average Rating: 3.3

Comments

12 responses to "Mike Hembree: Looking for a Democrat"
  1. 1
    Run Jump said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 9:52 AM

    Ok. Nice editorial there. Based upon your reasoning, Kyle Petty HAS to be a Democrat because he seems to care about the environment and he is well read. So therefore, Republicans don't care about the environment and only "read their checkbooks"? Please. Why do you report on a sport when you so obviously hold its participants and fans in such high contempt? Stick to Formula One. You can all condescend there together.

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  2. 2
    George said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 10:49 AM

    It's worth noting that while drivers tilt Republican, there is a fair percentage of Democrats in the stands and probably even more watching each week on tv. This makes it pretty much like golf, where pros tilt way to the right but weekend players and viewers tend to be more reflective of the country as a whole.

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  3. 3
    Rick Mumpower said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 1:33 PM

    Democrat here and proud of it.

    Report as Abuse
  4. 4
    Worm Dirt said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 1:52 PM

    WOW!! I mean.... if there are any Democrats out there with prejudices of their own that are looking for a way to UNFAIRLY lump Nascar into one giant ignorant stero-type, then YOU just unwillingly HANDED THEM the perfect launching-point with your paragraph on Kyle Petty!!! I don't care which way he leans politically, but how exactly does being well-read and non-conformist or caring about the environment make somebody a democrat??? If it does, then what are you saying about republicans? Are you saying they are all illiterate sheep? And IF YOU, Mike, are a republican, WHAT DOES that say about YOU personally, that you find it ODD and STRANGE that someone doesn't conform and ACTUALLY reads beyond the sports page? To me, it's just further validation for a decision to remain INDEPENDENT. Among MANY other things, it saves me from quite a lot of embarassment when reading things like this!

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  5. 5
    jessica kubiel said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 3:18 PM

    Not surprised, typical Republicans, millionaires looking for ways not to pay taxes....and middle income Democrats footing the bill for their salaries.

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  6. 6
    Run Jump said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 4:00 PM

    Conservative here. And very proud of it. You see, alot of us are actually educated, and well read. Oh, and Jessica, I'm not rich. I'm firmly entrenched in the middle class. Please refrain from making sweeping statements about people. This tendency to lump people into stereotypes is a very Democrat-like trait. This was my main problem with the article and Jessica has illustrated my point, again.

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  7. 7
    Anonymous said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 5:16 PM

    This article is repulsive. And I'm finding the majority of Democrats are too. I'm proud to be a Republican. And I'm in the middle class. God help America if Obama actually does get in.

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  8. 8
    Robert Wingert said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 5:24 PM

    I didn't know a Nascar fan can't be a Democrate. I better go change my registration. Funny, they never check my voter registration when I buy race tickets, shirts and hats.

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  9. 9
    Anonymous said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 7:23 PM

    I remember Republican Governor Jeb Bush of Florida, who stepped up and stood strong against the evil forces striving to gain access to the Earnhardt autopsy photos in 2001. Many, Many, Earnhardt fans and others, switched to the Republican Party to stand with Governor Bush. Governor Bush. We hope Republican Senate primary winner Shane Martin, of South Carolina also remembers. Earnhardt Fans... NEVER... Forget...

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  10. 10
    emily bagwell said:
    Jul 1, 2008 at 7:34 PM

    Mike, you,re crapping the bottom of the barrel with this article. I'm happy to know that Nascar tends to lean to the right---that's the moral character most of the older drivers were raised with. Kyle was branded a non-conformist because he had a ponytail and rode a motorcycle. That's his choice, but I'm Republican and am proud of it. I've worked like a dog all my life and have never had any freebies handed to me---much like Democrats think the government is supposed to provide for those who choose not to work (off my tax dollars I might add). This topic does not belong in Nascar. You're right Robert---they don't check anything when your spending your money except maybe to see if you're breathing.

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  11. 11
    Anonymous said:
    Jul 2, 2008 at 6:34 AM

    After the last 7 years with the bogus war in Iraq that has cost over 4000 young American lives and thousands that will never be the same. If you vote republican, you really need to think again, educate yourself, and vote for better not worse.

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  12. 12
    emily bagwell said:
    Jul 2, 2008 at 3:43 PM

    How many died on 9/11. People have short memories. Do you have a crystal ball to tell that we would not have had other attacks. I don't think so. I have a Master's Degree, and I think I'm pretty well educated. This is not the place to air political views, but I refuse to be called uneducated because I will be voting Republican. Obama hasn't shown me anything but a bunch of empty Rhetoric and promises that he can't keep---that's what draws the uneducated!

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