White voters who didn't vote for President Obama….

Millions of American voters had a great many reasons in mind on Nov. 6 when they voted for Romney and not for President Obama.

Let's just put a frame of reference on the possible motivations of white voters in, say, Mississippi.

Exit polls done on election day suggest that about 90% of white voters in Mississippi voted for Romney. That is, Mississippi white voters were more than twice as likely as white voters everywhere to vote for the Republican challenger….nationwide, President Obama got the support of about 39% of white voters.

Now, Mississippi is not a bastion of the very wealthy, it's not the headquarters of scads of major hedge funds or big banks, it doesn't share a border with Mexico, it's not a thriving capitalist stronghold of entrepreneurial enterprise—no one ever heard of "Mississippi Valley"—it's not a natural breeding ground for small government enthusiasts, it's not obvious that Mississippians as a group would want major cutbacks in government spending……

See, here's the thing: Mississippi is one of the states that sucks up far more federal spending per capita than it pays in federal taxes – and that's big time, Mississippians get almost $3 worth of federal spending and benefits for every dollar paid in personal and corporate federal taxes. Only two states (New Mexico and Alaska) get more.

De facto, in the simplest terms of pocketbook politics, Mississippians actually love the federal government. In this simplistic view, they should be loving President Obama down in Mississippi.

I wonder why 90% of white voters went for the other guy?

Taxes in, benefits out, by state....