Interesting definition: "Whole Foods Republicans" — independent-minded voters who embrace a progressive lifestyle but not progressive politics. "These highly-educated individuals appreciate diversity and would never tell racist or homophobic jokes; they like living in walk-able urban environments; they believe in environmental stewardship, community service and a spirit of inclusion. And yes, many shop at Whole Foods, which has become a symbol of progressive affluence but is also a good example of the free enterprise system at work." This quote comes from Whole Food Republicans, an opinion piece by Michael J. Petrilli in the December 14th edition of The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Petrilli has an interesting characterization of today's electorate while noting that people's politics are as much about their lifestyle choices as their policy positions.

Republicans live in exurbs and small towns, drive pick-up trucks or SUVs, go to church every Sunday, and listen to country music. Well-heeled Democrats live in cities and close-in suburbs, drive hybrids or Volvos, hang out at bookshops, and frequent farmers' markets. These are stereotypes, of course, but they also contain some truth.

Widening this cultural divide has long been part of the GOP playbook, going back to Nixon's attacks on "East Coast intellectuals" and forward to candidate Obama's arugula-eating tendencies. But with the white working class shrinking and the educated "creative class" growing, playing the populism card looks like a strategy of subtraction rather than addition. A more enlightened approach would be to go after college-educated voters, to make the GOP safe for smarties again.

As an M.I.T.-educated engineer, I have been really turned off by how Republicans have played this populism card in the years since President Nixon. Some in the GOP see continuing down this road as an opportunity rather than as a problem. "Let the Democrats have the Starbucks set, goes the thinking, and we'll grab working-class families. Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, for instance, wants to embrace "Sam's Club" Republicans. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee pitched himself in 2008 as the guy who 'looks like your co-worker, not your boss.' Even Mitt Romney blasted 'Eastern elites.' And of course there's Sarah Palin, whose entire brand is anti-intellectual."

Do these Republican party leaders even appreciate how off-putting their comments are to someone who has at least an undergraduate college education, let alone an educated individual who can even think independently for themself? The Republican leaders of my youth were people like New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and Massachusetts U.S. Senator Edward Brooke. Those Republicans were generally socially moderate to liberal and fiscally conservative. Where have all of those Rockefeller Republicans gone? The above has made me very suspicious of the Republican Party.

I am equally suspicious, if not even more so, of the Democratic Party. Lifestyle choices aside, I view big government (and the often associated ineffective bloated bureaucracies) with great suspicion. "There's no law that someone who enjoys organic food, rides his bike to work, or wants a diverse school for his kids must also believe that the federal government should take over the health-care system or waste money on thousands of social programs with no evidence of effectiveness. Nor do highly educated people have to agree that a strong national defense is harmful to the cause of peace and international cooperation."

Perhaps this is why I remain an independent voter (and more and more college educated people like me are becoming so). What is wrong with having moderate to liberal views on social issues and being fiscally conservative at the same time?

Mr. Petrilli ends his opinion piece with the question of how the Republican Party might woo voters like me to their column.

The first step is to stop denigrating intelligence and education. President George W. Bush's bantering about being a "C" student may have enamored "the man in the street," but it surely discouraged more than a few "A" students from feeling like part of the team.

The same is true for Mrs. Palin's inability to name a single newspaper she reads. If the GOP doesn't want to be branded the "Party of Stupid," it could stand to nominate more people who can speak eloquently on complicated policy matters.

Even more important is the party's message on divisive social issues. When some Republicans use homophobic language, express thinly disguised contempt toward immigrants, or ridicule heartfelt concerns for the environment, they affront the values of the educated class. And they lose votes they otherwise ought to win.

Conservative columnist Peggy Noonan has suggested that with his Economic Noble Prize acceptance speech in Norway and his economic speech at Brookings Institute, President Obama has started to move to the political center in the last week. If this shift is real, there is hope that his declining poll numbers will at least moderate. However, after a year of governing from the left (and perhaps being beholden to the very liberal left wing of the Democratic Party), there are legitimate questions about whether President Obama can actually achieve anything while in the center.

President Obama has called for an end of partisan politics in Congress. To achieve anything while positioned in the center, he will need to work with both Republicans and Democrats. Barack Obama is a well-educated man with a pedigree of Columbia and Harvard. His rhetoric is quite eloquent. Part of his attraction on the campaign trail was the perhaps unrealistic view that here was a thinker who was all about change and could get things done in Washington.

During 2010, it will be quite interesting to see how President Obama governs from the center. His success in getting anything done as well as how both Democrat and Republican politicians react will likely determine the outcome of the 2010 Congressional and state elections. A key determinant will be the approximately 30% of Americans 25 years or older who have at least a bachelor's degree. Many of them are independents (like me) disgusted and wary of the extreme wings of both the Democrat and Republican parties.

Which political party will truly move to the center of an educated America? After all, there is nothing wrong with being moderate to liberal on social issues and fiscally conservative. In my view, neither major party is doing America right. Perhaps it really is time for "Whole Foods Republicans"? Time will tell.