They've leveraged the culture wars to the point that a good chunk of the rural, economically disadvantaged voters are cool with a northeastern elite billionaire looting the country.
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dixiecrat
but it was the GOP that actively sought to recruit them:
* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_strategy
The quotation was describing the creation of the very culture wars we're still living with today. And the evidence shows that this is still going on:
See also the apopleptic rage the rural right went into when Hillary Clinton made her "deplorables" remark. Even though she was clearly and explicitly talking about the white supremacists and racists infiltrating the Trump camp - something she was entirely correct about mind you - they chose to trauma bond with the white supremacists and rally around a billionaire pedophile rather than concede a point to a "liberal" in good faith.