People began to perceive them as promoting dependency. The Republicans tend to view government simply as a barrier to opportunities. If voters are given a choice between a dependency state and a party that will tear down barriers, they might choose to tear down barriers. But if given a choice between tearing down government and supporting a government that is seen as actively promoting opportunity, they tend to vote for the pro-government party. The Democrats have misplayed their hand on this in the past, but the Republicans are really misplaying their hand now.
Parents feel they are losing control over their kids to television, lousy schools, and crime.
Democrats and the left have been reluctant to take this moral unease seriously. The problem for Republicans is that families sense a lot of their problems arise because parents aren't around enough, because they're working too much in order to make ends meet. If the plant that provides most of the employment in your town closes, it's hard to maintain community and feed your family. Slowly, starting in '92, Democrats began to realize they could talk about family issues and push the Republicans to face up to the economic problems. Civil society needs protection from both government and the market.