Tag: rasmussen

Rasmussen: 54/42 against health care rationing.

It would seem that finally putting out all the various versions, alternates, and fevered mutterings of what the Democrats are trying to call ‘health care reform’ has helped to clarify matters for voters some more. It’s just not clarifying matters in a fashion that will make the current ruling party happy. Rasmussen’s latest snapshot:

Now that the Senate Finance Committee has passed its version of health care reform, 42% of voters nationwide favor the health care reform plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats. That’s down two points from a week ago and down four from the week before.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 54% are opposed to the plan.

It is perhaps unkind to point out two details about the 42%:

  • The current state of affairs means that the number represents support for the hope that there will eventually be an acceptable health care bill.
  • Hope is not a plan.

…but it’s probably necessary.  Watching the… seven*?… Democratic factions try to reconcile the mess that they’ve created for themselves should be remarkably engrossing.

Moe Lane

*Well, you’ve got House progressives & Senate liberals; like vulnerable House members and ‘moderate’ Democratic Senators, there’s the House/Senate split on outlook to consider.  So that’s four.  Then there’s the House’s and the Senate’s leadership, with the two groups being barely civil to each other these days.  That’s two more.  And then there’s the White House, who pretty much caused this mess by letting the other six factions have free rein over the process.  So, seven.

Crossposted to RedState.

DNC preparing to cut Creigh Deeds loose?

(Via The Campaign Spot) Not that they would ever, ever come out and say so – but when the one truly hopeful poll that one’s had in months for a particular campaign reverses itself the next time it’s taken again, well.  Let’s just say that a handy excuse would be… handy.

The bad poll news comes on the heels of a story circulating in Democratic circles today that the Democratic National Committee is reportedly holding on to its $5 million financial commitment to the Deeds campaign out of concern that the Deeds campaign has focused too much of its attention on the controversial Bob McDonnell 1989 grad-school thesis setting out a hardline social-conservative political agenda for his budding political career and not enough on putting down a framework for what a Deeds administration would do for Virginia.

That’s so clever it’s almost diabolical. Remember: Deeds is the guy that the national party had the least preexisting ties with, so there’s less people to offend here.  And telling him to come up with a new campaign narrative may sound reasonable – until you remember that we’re down to one month before the election. Also, five million dollars is suddenly looking like a lot more money, in this era of anemic Democratic fundraising; obviously, spending it on an election is what it’s there for… but throwing it away on an election is usually not considered smart.

Again, there’s no possible way that the DNC will ever admit that they’re going to cut Deeds loose.  They’ll in fact angrily deny it.  But ask yourself: in their shoes, would you be throwing good money after Creigh?

Moe Lane

PS: Bob McDonnell for Governor.  It’s the only way to be sure.

Crossposted to RedState.

Rasmussen: Obamacare support drops six points overnight.

We call this ‘free fall.’

…Actually, we call it “a really, really good one-day result falls gets cycled out of the three-day average” – but going from 51/46 to 45/52 is still a pretty dramatic event.

Also, funny.

Moe Lane

PS: Hey! Why doesn’t the President make some more speeches? That should perk things right up.

PPS: Rasmussen is also noting that the President’s favorable ratings (50%) are at pre-speech levels, too.

Crossposted to RedState.

It’s pretty much just “Reaganesque” at this point.

(Via AoSHQ Headlines)  Political identifiers are taking a beating these days. A comparison between this month’s survey by Rasmussen and November’s shows that the public is getting sick of pretty much all of us.

Well, all of us except Ronald Reagan.


 Positive Negative In-Between
Epithet Now Nov Now Nov Now Nov
Liberal 15% 19% 41% 36% 42% 41%
Progressive 32% 40% 27% 16% 36% 40%
Conservative 32% 37% 29% 20% 37% 40%
Moderate 35% 40% 12% 8% 51% 50%
Like Ronald Reagan 41% 43% 25% 26% 31% 29%

Spokesmen from either the Reaganlican or the Reagancratic parties were unavailable for comment.

MoReagan LReagane

Crossposted to ReagandState.

Rasmussen: modest gain in support for health care rationing.

The first of what will be a daily series of Rasmussen polls charting post-speech opinions on the health care rationing bill is in: as expected, the numbers have shifted in the Democrats’ favor (from 44/53 for/against to 46/51). If that the increase in support is sustained today, we’ll see those numbers increase to a statistical tie (which is what Rasmussen reported the numbers being right after the speech itself). So, good news for the President, right?

Depends on what his actual goal was. If he wanted to shore up his base? Yes. If he wanted to change the conditions of the fight? …No, not really: Continue reading Rasmussen: modest gain in support for health care rationing.

The September Rasmussen Public Trust Numbers.

The Democrats may simply have to accept the fact that they no longer can automatically count on the trust of the American people on any topic.

September 2009 August 2009
Issue Dem GOP Diff Dem GOP Diff Shift
Health Care 44% 44% – 41% 44% (3) 3
Education 45% 40% 5 38% 41% (3) 8
Social Security 43% 41% 2 39% 43% (4) 6
Abortion 37% 44% (7) 36% 46% (10) 3
Economy 39% 47% (8) 40% 46% (6) (2)
Taxes 40% 48% (8) 35% 51% (16) 8
Iraq 37% 47% (10) 42% 42% – (10)
Nat’l Security 39% 51% (12) 43% 47% (4) (8)
Gov’t Ethics 34% 35% (1) 34% 31% 3 (4)
Immigration 33% 45% (12) 35% 43% (8) (4)

Seven out of ten, and one tie.  The good news for the Democrats is that they made some decent recoveries from August’s numbers; the bad news is that August was really bad for them, so they’re still trying to make up ground.  The most important/topical number there – health care – is probably their brightest spot, but being equally trusted on an issue when you’ve spent the last few years being clearly trusted is not the most welcome news in the world.  Particularly when ‘trusting the Democrat’ does not exclude ‘trusting the Democrat to vote the Republican position.’

Moving on: nice to see that the Government Ethics numbers are starting to consistently reflect objective reality, not to mention the Economy ones.  I’m interested how much of that is reflected by cap-and-trade – and how bringing that issue back will affect the Taxes question.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

I would like to thank the pro-health care rationing folks for their help.

Thanks in large part to your activities – and according to Rasmussen:

  • 49% “have a favorable opinion of those opposing the health care reforms at town hall meetings” (41% last month).
  • 59% “say the town hall protesters are citizens reflecting the concerns of their neighbors (49% last month).
  • 56% “say that it’s more important for Congressmen to hear the view of their constituents rather than explain the proposed health care legislation.”

And, best of all?  While Democrats disagree on all three of those – Republicans and independents don’t.

So.  Speaking for the Republican party: much obliged.  Can we count on your invaluable assistance, if and when the Democrats in Congress find the courage to again address cap-and-trade?

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

Three summaries of cap-and-trade.

Washington Post: The Democrats’ cap-and-trade bill is popular, as long as it doesn’t cost people more than $25 a month.  Then it craters (Via The Conservatives.com).

Rasmussen: The Democrats’ cap-and-trade bill is unpopular, with the people who hate it really hating it and the people who like it only kind of liking it (Via The Campaign Spot).

Senate Democrats: The not-particularly-sudden death of Senator Kennedy requires that the bill be delayed again (Via Don Surber).

I’m going to go out on a limb here and suggest that Senate Democrats have already made up their own minds over whether they believe Rasmussen, or the Washington Post.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

I actually find this Rasmussen cash-for-appliances poll reassuring.

When you can’t get a majority of the population to agree that a government subsidy of their new kitchen upgrade is a good idea – when, in fact, you get just under half of the population saying that it’s a bad idea – well, perhaps we’re not quite as doomed as some might think.

Thirty-nine percent (39%) of Americans favor a “cash for clunkers”-like government program to give cash rebates to people who buy new, energy-efficient appliances, but 49% think it’s a bad idea, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Twelve percent (12%) aren’t sure what they think of the $300-million plan that will provide cash rebates up to $200 to Americans who buy energy-efficient refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines and the like. Unlike the just-concluded “cash for clunkers” plan to encourage purchase of newer, more energy-efficient cars, no trade-ins are required.

First off, it’s not a $300-million plan. It’s a “$300-million, plus whatever else we pump into the program when it runs dry, which would probably be… by lunchtime” plan.  Second, given the differences in this program with Cash-For-Clunkers (no need for trade-ins, more eligible participants, much easier to scam the government) the 49% against is astounding.  Given that it’s as close to being free money as you can get without just cutting people a check, I would have guessed it’d be 65/35 the other way.

Apparently, we can be taught.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

Rasmussen: 24% of voters want Democrats to go it alone.

You can say a lot of things about this Rasmussen poll on health care rationing (and, if you’re a Democratic politician, most of them will probably be scatalogical):

If Democrats agree on a health care reform bill that is opposed by all Republicans in Congress, 24% of voters nationwide say the Democrats should pass that bill.

But a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 58% believe the Democrats should change the bill to win support from “a reasonable number of Republicans.” Nineteen percent (19%) are not sure what congressional Democrats should do.

…but here’s one thought that might escape notice: remember how, last year, there was a lot of confusion about which party was actually running Congress? Well, I think that we can safely assume that this is no longer an issue for the Republican party.  Which is funny, because trying to figure out how to make that fact of life clearer was a big problem for us last year…

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.