I served eight years on the local County Council here in the northwest
corner of Washington State (about 90 miles south of Vancouver, BC).  I have
made the same comments to my students about conspiracies: we could hardly
get organized enough to have a retreat at a little local resort, much less
undertake a conspiracy.
 
But I think middle class white men, primarily, see that their standard of
living is declining somewhat, and notice the growing influence of women and
non-whites, and are distressed.  Without the Soviet Union to rally against,
a new enemy must be found.
 
Great article, by the way, in the current issue of the Atlantic; it deals
directly with US foreign policy, but has a thought-provoking description of
the current state of our domestic affairs.