Could this be a good year at the polls for Democrats? Republicans are worried:
In eight concise paragraphs, two moderate and two conservative House Republicans put into writing last week what they say many of their colleagues quietly fear: the GOP’s plunging poll numbers, rising public support for a Congress controlled by Democrats and the increasing belief among voters that the Republican Party is corrupt.
House Republicans will gather Thursday to elect a successor to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) as majority leader, and the perceptions of corruption, though “neither fair nor accurate . . . are reality,” Reps. Jim Kolbe (Ariz.), Charles Bass (N.H.), Paul Ryan (Wis.) and Tom Feeney (Fla.) wrote in a letter to their colleagues, imploring them to vote for change. “We must realize that the Majority we have all worked so hard for is in jeopardy.”
Polls would seem to suggest the GOP is not very popular right now.
Slide
I always said one silver lining to Bush winning re-election was that the country would get a good whiff of what Republican governance would produce without any checks. Well, here we are. Republican President. Republican House. Republican Senate. Result? Lowest approval for Congress in a decade. A president hovering around 40% approval. 65% of American’s think we are on the “wrong track”.
Yes, Republicans sound good in theory (hey, its not very politically brave to cut taxes, cut taxes, cut taxes, spend, spend, spend). But alas there are reprecussions to such policies.
The Worst Prsident ever. The most corrupt congress ever. Stuck in a quagmire war that was completely unnecessary.
Real wages declining for the last five years. Civil liberties being chipped away daily. Incompetence everywhere you look. Cronyism taken to new heights. Corruption rampant. Yes, Republicans, they share your values.
guav
Yeah Slide, that’s basically what I was thinking in November ’04 when I wrote I Want Bush To Win.
Lines
What will Democrat inherit, though? Another failed experiment that will take years to reverse.
And what will be the difference? In 8 years, when things are improving for America, the pendulum will swing right again and we’ll be stuck with another Bush or Bush-wannabe.
Screw the Republic, lets look for a new method of governance where corruption is minimized, where parties are minimized and where the people always come first.
ppGaz
Well, we are living in times that test again whether the American Experiment will be a success or a failure for its citizens. The fact that public contentedness with the governance of the Spuds is fading is an indication that the experiment is still able to work.
But we can’t take it for granted. We have to fight like rats at times to see to it that the buttheads don’t completely screw it all up. By “at times,” I mean, now.
Paul L.
Paul L. Says:
Maybe you would like to comment on this?
BUSH BREAKS FIFTY PERCENT APPROVAL on the Rasmussen poll.
So you believe in pure democracy/Mob Rule? So if 50.1 % believe in banning abortion/gay marriage/any other cause you support, you are OK with that?
Lines
Damn Paul, you prove how much of a simpleton you are at all opportunities, don’t you?
Democracy, Fascism, Communism, Feudalism are all well defined and are just examples. No government in existance follows the definition of governance to perfection, because when actual people and their ego’s get involved, the shit hits the fan.
I’m saying that a new method of governance may need to be found, that a way to minimize ego’s, parties and the concept of “winning” can be minimized. Do I have the plan? No. But I think there are those in academia and elsewhere that can come up with something that will be much less destructive and unbalanced as what we have right now. Governances need time to evolve, and maybe we’re de-evolving or holding onto a method of governance that is long overdue for an overhaul.
Otto Man
That’s the same Rasmussen poll that showed Kerry leading much of last year, the one Republicans mocked endlessly. Now they love it.
With good reason, I suppose, because it’s still the outlier. CBS has Bush at 37%, NBC at 38%, and most of the others in the mid-40s.
Vladi G
Hmm….
Looks like they’re also liars.
Blue Neponset
I think the American public is getting tired of hearing excuses from the Republicans. It is getting more and more difficult to ignore the fact that the GOP has controlled the WH and the House for every single day of Bush’s amdministration and they have controlled the Senate for all but 18 months of Bush’s administration. The Repubs have had ample time and opportunity to materially reduce government spending, develop and implement an energy policy, address health care costs, and streamline the tax system. Yet, they have done none of these things. Voters are starting to realize the Republicans talk a good game but they can’t get results.
Krista
The new slogan for Fox News.
Lines
Blue:
as a counterpoint to that argument, Hillary’s Health Care system in the 90’s.
With her failure to even get a plan out for public consumption I lost any belief that America (made up of the 2 parties) can make the radical changes necessary to protect its citizens in a progressive fashion. Given our inability to make changes to a system where large corporations are making money hand-over-fist, I don’t fault the Republican’s for their failures to make changes. I do fault them, however, for even suggesting the changes were possible or likely.
Blue Neponset
Lines:
I don’t believe that the US health care system is beyond repair. If Hillary and the Repubs can’t fix it I am willing to give someone else a shot at it. I think that is what many people are beginning to think…Why vote Republican if they can’t fix the healthcare system? Why vote Republican if they cant’ control government spending? etc. etc. My point is the Repubs don’t have much to show for their time in office and people are starting to hold them accountable for that.
ppGaz
The Dobsonites don’t think so, either. Wasn’t it Dobson, just days ago, who said “We have very little to show” for having gotten the Republicans into power?
Their coalition is coming apart, which was bound to happen.
ppGaz
Found the reference, and got such a chuckle, had to post it.
You know, you couldn’t invent these chowderheads if they didn’t exist …. nobody would believe you.
Defense of marriage, “one of the most important pieces of legislation.” And people wonder why we lefties hurl vitriol at these stupid fucking assholes.
Mr Furious
Common sense and recent history suggest that the Democrats are poised to blow the opportunity. Again.
Blue Neponset
I think it is too soon to tell. The 1994 GOP’s ‘Contract with America’ didn’t go public until 6 weeks before the election. If the Dems have no platform or we are still talking about 9/11 in September you may be right, but I think the Dems are going to finally hit the right notes this summer/fall.
stickler
I think the Democrats aren’t going to have to do very much at all; the rotten fruit of governance is going to fall into their laps.
Just consider all the variables that are likely to be on the agenda by November: Iraq, Iran (which we may bomb), the housing market, oil/gasoline/gas prices, the budget, healthcare, and more misery at GM/Ford. To name a few. Which of these are likely to benefit the GOP?
Oh, and there’s that Abramoff thing, and the Plame investigation, and starting in a week or so Senate hearings into the NSA wiretapping.
There are many possibilities. For the GOP, they’re almost all bad and some (indictment of the entire Congressional leadership) catastrophic.
Slide
I’ll let the numbers speak for themselves. Bold number is Bush’s approval.
.
Stormy70
Better pony up, demo-hawks. Your party will need some money for those Congressional races.
I
Stormy70
I
Richard Bottoms
We are so going to kick your asses in November.
“Craaazy” Howard Dean has been rasing money and sending to the states like never before, and this time we are going to fight in all fifty states. We conceed nothing.
Wait until the first ad hits the air:
“Bin Ladedn? I don’t think much about him.” — GWB.
Then there’s that little matter of 2300 dead soldiers.
And the botch of Katrina. And guess what, it won’t be about New Orleans, they will be about about Haley Barbour’s inability to deliver in rural Mississippi which is still devastated.
Republicans can’t escape having been in charge. It’s been the only upside of Kerry losing.
Cause now: It’s. All. Your. Fault.
Ha Ha.
http://www.snpp.com/guides/nelson.file.html
— Nelson Muntz
Richard Bottoms
This doesn’t make our commander in chief look, well incompetent doesit? Instead of the deadly serious and widely praised Nuremburg trials we have Jerry Springer.
All that’s missing is Saddam being bleeped as he yells, “Bring it on Biatch”.
Didn’t I see Doctor Evil do this in Austin Powers.
Is Bush the Worst President Ever.
Richard Bottoms
And last but not least. Thsi will make for some very enjoyable political ads:
Stormy70
Is their any money for it, or is Move On going to advertise again? They were a huge help. I say you need more of Hollywood knocking on doors, too. Plus, you need to go left, left, left.
Also, denigrating everyone’s religion would be nice, too. Don’t forget that hurting terrorists is a no, no. Don’t want France pissed at us.
I do love Dean.
Richard Bottoms
So do I.
Blue Neponset
Stormy:
Tell us when the Republicans are going to actually cut government spending or come up with a national energy policy?
Lee
I read the same thing on Grudge and got a chuckle. I think that is a prime example of missing the forest for the trees.
Steve
Dean has done incredible work as party chair, building up the state parties, funneling money to build up infrastructure in places where the Democrats never even bothered to compete in the past. Heck, in the South, your Democratic party chairman was just as likely to be a new-style Republican who never bothered to change his party registration because he liked his cushy job.
Building infrastructure obviously takes money that could be spent on a one-time ad instead, but it seems like a smart investment to me. I have no problem with anyone who wants to underestimate Dean by thinking of him merely as a quote machine, though.
VidaLoca
I gotta say it, Stormy: me too. At least give the man some credit: he’s trying to organize the fight back. Part of the reason that the Repubs are where they are today (in all its obscene glory) is because the Dems did way too little of that for way too long. Change, and they may have a chance. The guys you should be loving are the ones like Lieberman.
That said, they are known for never missing an opportunity to miss an opportunity…
Chris Johnson
Can we have Democrats that try to talk to adults, please? I’m awful tired of “ooo, I can scare you worse!” and “let’s raise more money than the other guy because that is the only factor making you win!”
Can we have a country with all its roads, missiles, bombs and debts run by ADULTS, please? Rule by children marketed to children isn’t working.
Can we talk about these things, including the ugly bits, without spinning all from both sides to target the emotional level of a retarded eight-year old?
Enough…
Richard Bottoms
If you are suggesting the Democrats bring a knife to a gun fight, then no.
Kerry tried the high road with the Swiftliars. You see where that got us.
Fuck that. It’s war.
ppGaz
Of course, you are exactly right. And of course, Stormy will never get it.
To Stormy, all of this stuff is just words on a blog, a silly zero-sum game that interferes sometimes with her hair appointments and tv watching. Donkeys and elephants, like little plastic pieces on a game board.
CrockPot
Richard said
I live in Jackson, MS and from everything that I read and hear down here Haley Barbour is the model of efficiency compared to Louisiana, and New Orleans in particular. Not high praise I know, but it won’t hurt republicans locally here in Mississippi. I don’t think any big changes are coming to Mississippi’s national delegates in 2006.
To bad really, but the folks down on the MS coast seem more pissed at ‘Washington’ and the main stream media ignoring them in favor of New Orleans, than Barber or any of the MS congressional members.
PS: I’ve been to the coast and you really cannot imagine the scope of the devastation.
Lines
In some of my neighboring states, Democrats are starting to take serious inroads into burgeoning population centers, such as Boise, Idaho. Corruption and capitulation to the current regime has not impressed the normally red voters and the purple hue is deepening.
With Reid’s latest visit and the Dean campaign to take back individual states starting with governor seats, the Republicans of the Northwest are fearful. Now is when they are the most dangerous, realizing they are the cornered rat, that their cheese vault is about to be opened to the light of day and that they may actually have to work together to get anything done.
Stormy70
Except I give money to my party, as well. Plus, I print out the ravings on Kos, now with Kerry and Kennedy, and show my squishy friends how vile the left is towards anyone who attends church, who likes Nascar, who likes to hunt, who likes guns, etc. Then I show them how the left thinks Bush is scarier than terrorists, or madmen in the Middle East who think women are chattel. I show them how noone on the left has a plan for National Security, because really, it’s the Christians who are to be feared, not Islamic fascist radicals. Then I show them pictures of the anti-war movement with their hate America signs. Then I mention the tax hikes under Democrats, because you can’t be trusted with your own money.
Firms their voting right up. Worked in 2004.
Kerry just sent his out of state Move on hippies (who, by the way, the Dems tried to scare them by telling them they would be drafted into the military if Bush won) to knock on doors.
Richard Bottoms
I didn’t say the ads would be aimed at Mississippi.
My target this year is not anyone who is a Republican.
It is the dumbell Democrats who voted for Bush. And the independents who voted for something other than 2300 dead soldiers, 500 billion wasted in Iraq, and Terri Shiavo.
As I said before. I am sure personally most Republicans, like anyoneone else are thouroughly likeable people. But I am not interested in your vote. As one radio host used to say, “Keep you cards and letters.”
You want to belong to the fag bashing bible thumping theocrat party be my guest.
I want the guy who thought Bush would keep his job secure.
You know, like the 30,000 fired workers at Ford whose sons are dying in Iraq.
I am sure their first prioroity in Novermber will be gay marriage.
Pooh
Is Stormy Anna Benson?
Pooh
Richard, before you start jumping up and down about Exxon/Mobile’s profits, let’s remember that they are really big. $10bil in profits is a big number, but it’s on $100bil of sales. 10% is nice but it’s not ludicrous. If a supermarket sold enough cereal it could make a $10bil profit, doesn’t make it the antichrist. That being said, it’s also true that BigOil’s profit margins benefit from the, er, positive externalities created by many adminstration policies.
Steve
This link is dedicated to Stormy, who tells all her friends:
“No one on the Left has a plan for National Security.”
CrockPot
Richard,
If the group you would target is who you say in the above post then that is probably a very small number of voters.
Seems you’d do better to go after the dis-affected conservatives who want to know what happend to the republican party and the independent and moderate voters that swing with their pocketbook and a single issue or two.
I just can’t see the number of people that consider themselves ‘democrat’ that voted for Bush in the last election to be very large at all.
Oh, and on the Mississippi Delagates thing, I didn’t think you were directly talking about changes to the way Mississippians vote. I just thought I’d let you know that most of the people directly involved seemed to think ‘their’ good-ole boys are doing well by them. Seems it would be easier to get good sound-bites from New Orleanians for election purposes.
Faux News
.
I hope some young female in the audience stood up and said to Saddam’s wife/wives “GIRL you got to lose that ZERO and find yourself a HERO!” whereupon Saddam tries to physically launch himself into the audience but is restrained at the last minute.
Coming up after the break: Rikki Lake finds out if Saddam is the baby’s Daddy for Ann Coulter’s unexpected pregnancy. Let’s see what the Stork says right after this…
Stormy70
Well, if Bush is doing it, then Kerry will come out against it. It’s his nature. This was his entire plan for National Security? I seem to remember him saying we need to get our European allies and the UN involved. They have been involved with Iran, but they are feckless as always. When push comes to shove, no Democrat will go all the way to protect this country. See Clinton and Carter. Half-assed attempts all the way.
Stormy70
This from a city who sells this T-shirt:
N.O.P.D. – Not our problem dude.
All the Republicans have to do is show Nagin’s bus depot pic again, then mention all the corrupt LA pols wanted $250 billion to clean up their state.
Lines
Since this thread has been queered by an ignorant drunk ranting lunatic, can someone please link the Firefox pluggin on how to ignore every post done by that person?
Steve
You have it backwards, Stormy. Kerry was in favor of it, so Bush came out against it. You might say it’s his nature. Bush and Rice and all their friends in the media screamed to high heaven about how dangerous and irresponsible a plan it was. Now that the election’s over, they’re like “Yeah, we were just lying about that because it was a campaign. We actually think that’s the best plan.”
Stormy70
“That person (Stormy) is damaging my calm. {sniff} Make her stop posting, John. I know I will insult her by calling her drunk. Noone on these threads has ever used this taunt before.”
LOL. You liberals, always with the clever turn of phrase.
Slide
Put me in the “I love Dean” category. Oh, and don’t worry about money, I have a feeling money is going to be pouring into Dem bank accounts this election cycle. In the meantime Dean has been doing a fantastic job organizing on the State level. I’ve never seen the left so motivated. Money will NOT be an issue for Dems this election year I promise you Stormy. Now have another drink and stroke your kitty and everything will be just dandy.
Lee
Are you really that simple and/or partisan that you really believe this?
Theseus
They have very good reason to worry, thanks to their own stupidity, incompetance and corruption. That said, I think you are underestimating the capacity of Democrats to screw themselves over, even with a hand apparently as strong as the one they’re being delt with. All they have to do is sit back and allow the moronic and corrupt Republicans to completely self-destruct and self-immolate themselves, while sounding plausible and serious on National Security. But they can’t help themselves, Bush is too EVIL and a greater threat than radical Islamist terrorists, Alito is a rightwing closet fascist, spying on terrorists is bad, and America is doomed, doomed, doomed in Iraq. A good chunk of the Republicans deserve to be thrown out on their asses; it’s too bad the choice is between them or today’s Kossack Democrats. The most important poll will be the one in November and, sadly, the Republicans greatest asset is the Democratic party.
I don’t know if you followed the Canadian elections but there is a lesson there for Dems and the GOP. The Liberals, much like the GOP, had been running Canada essentially for the past 12 years I believe. Because of various scandals, corruption allegations and what not, it all came to a head about a year and a half ago when the Torries brought down the government. The Liberals, thanks to Tory incompetance and their own scare-mongering tactics and smears managed to squeeck out a minority government. That government lasted for about a year and a half. The Tories managed to win this time. The difference being they didn’t let the Liberals define them and Liberal scare tactics were not as effective as before mostly because they offered decent and palpable policy choices. They offered Canadians a choice. Much the same can be said for the recent elections in Germany. Democrats can win, but not if they keep behaving like lunatics who view Bush as a greater threat than Bin Laden. More Obama and Lieberman, less Kos, Kerry and Dean.
Lines
Nice ego Stormy.
Lines
yes, Theseus, if only those damn Democrats would stop playing rough and just follow along like a nice little Liebermans, America would be much better off.
If you hadn’t noticed, they did that for 2004 and lost, but of course you think its because of Dean and your labelled Kossacks. Thats a bunch of bullshit that doesn’t fly, and trying to hamstring the Democratic party with such flawed analysis is what will kill their chances above all else.
Paddy O'Shea
I’m afraid I must be hallucinating. Did I just read something from John Cole about, well, something like: “Polls would seem to suggest the GOP is not very popular right now?”
No, I must have read that wrong.
John Cole doesn’t like polls.
Richard Bottoms
Sorry, for those folks the choice is between a Republican they can stomach or staying home. They are never going to vote for a Democrat in any numbers despite that “Ohhh if only I could find a Dmeocrat who didn’t speak French” mantra.
Even one is too many. We want all our guys back, all the the majority of independents. In short the ONLY thing that matters is the %2 swing. Bush certainly provided that winning is winning. Whether by one vote or one million.
Or not winning the popular vote at all come to think of it.
The Republicans can stay home and watch Pat Robertson on the 700 club. Fuck em.
Typically most voters when polled think their guy is just fine, it’s the other crooks who are the problem. In this case the other guys are all Republicans.
Why? Black folks are voting 98% Deocratt this year thanks to GW’s good works and Ken Mehlman’s “oops sorry about that civil rights stuff”. Frankly it’s the wite folks we need to court. A focus on Mississippi’s devestation will be just the right illustration of FEMA incompetance thanks.
Lines
Illustrating how James Witt’s FEMA handled multiple emergencies with professionalism and transparancy while Drownie Brownie was more concerned with his dinner plans and what he was going to wear to a press conference should be plenty.
Theseus
Whatever. If you think shifting further left, albeit with greater anger, a louder voice and more partisanship, in a country whose political gravity lies to the right will guarantee victory, well, good luck with that. I guess the Dems are so far gone they’ve forgotten how President Clinton was so succesful. It certainly wasn’t by embracing the left and/or liberals. He did it largely by courting the center and peeling off the more moderate Republicans.
Stephen Harper, of the Conservative Party in Canada, did largely the same thing. Canada is a country whose political center of gravity lies slightly to the left. A man who shares many of President Bush’s policy positions is anathema to many Canadian voters, at least for now. So Harper largely deemphasized his more polarizing views and got his base of support to largely shut the hell up so he could appeal to a larger pool of Canadians. But most importantly, he chose to concentrate most of his campaign on what HE would do if elected Prime Minister, what policies he would pursue, how they would differ from Liberal policies etc. Instead of doing what he largely did in the last election, which was to attack and focus on Liberal scandals, he spent most of his time offering Canadians a viable alternative.
ppGaz
Care — ful. Do you want us to start quoting you and really embarassing you?
Or, how about we argue about your mother again?
Be nice.
jg
You have some very stupid friends. The republican party is counting on that.
Kimmitt
With all due respect, Clinton presided over a fairly brutal net loss in House/Senate power for the Democrats and failed to enact 1 of the 2 basic things he ran on. The Republican Party has followed a very successful strategy of saying they’ll do certain things (cut taxes, invade random countries, demonize gays) and then going and doing them. It seems like the Dems might want to try that set of tactics out and see if they work in our direction.
Theseus
The point is that President Clinton essentially governed, for most of his terms, as a centrist. In any case, didn’t the Senate/House losses occur during his first midterm elections in ’94, partly as a result of the HillaryCare aftermath? Hardly an encouraging endorsement of left of center policies.
Paddy O'Shea
Just in: Wall Street Journal/NBC Poll
Bush approval 39%
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11103804/
Nobody really likes Georgie any more.
Li
It continually amazes me how much time otherwise reasonable and intelligent people all across the political spectrum waste looking at polls. Poll results are a joke. Period. They are nothing more than widely unreliable numerics that give the false impression of making very complex issues look simple. They are normally based on the opinions of those citizens who pollsters can find who will actually agree to talk to them, as opposed to any thing even resembling a scientific sample. Any hope of legitimacy of polls usually falls victim to poorly worded questions (inadvertently) by incompetent questioners, or (on purpose) by agenda driven pollsters.
What, for example, does “I don’t think this country is going in the right direction” really mean? That you don’t like the current administration?, or that you don’t like the current adversarial, obstructionist, and nasty political climate? That you don’t think we should be in a war?, or that you don’t think the war is being prosecuted broadly and vigorously enough? That you don’t like that the price of gas is going up? That you don’t like that kids are sexually active at 14? That you don’t like the way college football bowl games are selected? That you don’t like the fact that Marshall Field’s name is being changed to Macy’s? Or, that you don’t like the fact that so many candidates’ and parties’ actions and decisions seem to be poll driven rather than policy driven? See where I am going with this?
I have a master’s degree in this stuff, by the way.
The Other Steve
I was right!
Someone get Ozzy back on the phone! We need to queue up the “Momma, I’m coming home!”
The Other Steve
That doesn’t fucking matter.
The goal of electing a President is not to get some hack in there to ramrod through a bunch of ideological hacks. The goal is to get someone whose a good leader and will focus the attention needed to solve the problems of the day.
This is why Republicans are bad for America. They don’t give a shit about America, they only care about their ideological hackery.
Bush has been living proof of this, and I have my hopes that the Democrats are going to realize what’s going on, and why Bush is really disliked by America.
Even compare and contrast Bush to Reagan. I think the mistake is Republicans don’t fully recognize just what Reagan did and did not do. They believe the bullshit fed to them by the pundits like reducing taxes always brings in more revenue and helps the economy, or that Reagan defeated the Soviet Union, etc..
Richard Bottoms
Stop lossed again.
I know those soldiers love the REMF’s fighting for Terri Shiavo while they get extended tours in the war zone.
The Other Steve
I have a master’s degree. In Science!
dawg
Wrapping themselves in their cocoon they forgot that McHitlerbushhaliburton was not running for election that fall.
The Repub congress is polling in really low numbers, but the Dhimmitudecrats are polling even lower.
Maybe Dean can pull it off, but the as long as “Be nice to the terrorists” remains part of the dem platform it’s libel be a repeat of 02 for the repubs and not reverse 94 for the Dems.
The best hope for the dems may be to make sure that repub voters are too bored to vote this fall. I doubt that chanting “I hate bush” will work any better than “I hate Clinton” did in 1998.
;)