I think its even more insidious than that. The political party machine on both the GOP and Dem side control what candidates are even put in front of us. Populist antiestablishmentism doesn't get you far because both the media and the political party itself are working against you. So you will still see younger politicians who hold these opinions in positions of power, because these are the opinions of the elite more than anything generational, and these are the candidates who receive the most support and most air time in front of voters.
Yes. I got very involved in my local district party a few years back. Probably the most powerful and effective organ of this party was its endorsements committee. I found it staggeringly depressing that round after round of endorsements went to exactly the same kinds of people: small business owners, cops, nurses, teachers and prosecutors. Basically, if you were for the system, you got in. Almost always the endorsement went to small business owners. Those endorsed almost always won the primary because they were immediately supported by party affiliated groups. The endoresment committee passed up social workers, corrections officers and public defenders. I remember one lady who worked in the sheriffs office for like 10 years came to talk about how things actually worked and what needed to change. She spoke clearly about the issue in the office, not polemical at all. Committee was a hard NO on her.