Originally Posted by kane

As I look around and read more about it, you are correct. It seems like he was talking about those who were not protesters and were more average working people, but the stuff I read doesn't say that they were all conservatives.

Here is something taken from Wikipedia about the silent majority.
"They did, in some cases, support the conservative policies of many politicians. Others were not particularly conservative politically, but resented what they saw as disrespect for American institutions."

I think the actual term has kind of morphed over the years and now is more about a group that makes up a majority of voters but does not widely express its views through marches or demonstrations than it is about support for one ideology or another.