NYT: Southern Democrats are 'One Step Closer to Extinction'

A New York Times article out Tuesday says Southern white Democrats have been on the endangered list since the civil rights reform of the 1960s, but this election season has taken them one step closer to extinction.

From the Times:

"From Virginia to Florida and South Carolina to Texas, nearly two dozen Democratic seats are susceptible to a potential Republican surge in congressional races on Election Day, leaving the party facing a situation where its only safe presence in the South is in urban and predominantly black districts

"The vulnerable Democrats across the South have moved to distance themselves from the partys agenda and President Obama. Several candidates have declared they would not support keeping Nancy Pelosi of California as House speaker if the party holds its majority.

"Should a large number of Democratic candidates lose, it would be a significant step in one of the most fundamental, if slow-moving, political realignments in American politics."