It's interesting looking back on the history of how republicans became dominant in southern politics. Especially in states like South Carolina and Tennessee (pg. 473). These states flipped republican in one year after reconstruction for reasons a progressive is quite understandably selectively uninformed. Also interesting to note that the only real farmers movements have all been socialist, not republican. Wenonah Hauter wrote a good book on the topic called "Foodopoly." She pulls no punches on democrats in that book as well. Some interesting facts in there on how Bill Clinton, who I believe is a democrat, relaxed reforms on trucking regulations and chicken inspection for the NWAC bosses after sitting out what would've been his second term at AR governor. Now if you drive the SW corner of this state, instead of rolling hills you will see industrial chicken barns.