In what seems to be a polling first, the president has appeared on a list of the top problems facing the country. A CBS News poll conducted earlier this month showed George W. Bush tied with energy prices and homelessness for the sixth spot.
The April 6-9 CBS poll was open-ended, meaning those polled were free to name whatever issues occurred to them. A more recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll asked respondents to choose their top priority from a list of issues. The top responses in the latter poll were “energy and the cost of gas” and “the war in Iraq,” both of which were named by 19% of those polled. Health care was third at 14%, followed by the economy, illegal immigration and terrorism, all at 11%.
At 27%, Iraq was the top priority in the CBS poll, which asked, “What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?” The economy came second at 13%. President Bush garnered 4%, neck and neck with energy and homelessness and ranking just below health care and terrorism at 5% and 6%, respectively.
Bush was not among the choices offered to those polled by NBC. Perhaps a little lobbying is in order.
Democratic candidates should take some heart and some lessons from the polls. On all the major issues except perhaps Iraq, Democratic positions are far more popular than Republican ones. That’s the heart part. The lesson part is, run on them. Make health care an issue: the Medicare prescription benefit is going to explode by campaign season. Too many people don’t have coverage. US companies are crippled by health care costs that businesses in countries with national health care plans don’t face.
Make energy an issue: that’s not going to get any better either, especially if we blow up Iran, and Republicans have no energy plan beyond shoveling tax breaks at the richest companies in the country and digging up Alaska. People despise oil companies. People like conservation. Do some math.
Make the president an issue. Please: we now have documentary evidence that he’s one of the top problems facing the country. Hire Stephen Colbert if you have to; if there’s one sure thing in American politics, it’s that he’ll do a better job on your campaigns than Bob Shrum and the Shrumettes will. Although you’ll have to keep him away from the press.
Make national security an issue. As we all know, and as the press are now reporting, terrorism has increased dramatically since we invaded Iraq. And now even the administration admits that at least part of the increase arose because we invaded Iraq, and that the terrorist training ground we built there will be haunting us for years to come. Mention that.
If you supported the war, blame it on Bush. Sure, only a moron would have believed him, but plead out: you weren’t used to having a president who lies about anything more serious than a blow job. And he did lie. People are coming out of the woodwork to document that he lied. Everyone knows he lied; even people who support him know he lied, although they think that’s a good thing. So it’s okay: you can say he lied. Because, you know, he did. And he’s going to do it again with Iran.
National security: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Health care: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Energy plan: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Civil liberties: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Corruption: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Fiscal responsibility: the president and the Republican Congress suck.
Big government. Intrusive government. Incompetent government. Irresponsible government. Big, intrusive, incompetent and irresponsible government, brought to you by a president who ranks among the top problems facing the country and by the Republican Congress.
There is no way in the world that any Democrat with even the hint of a spine should come off second best in any race that’s even halfway comeptetive.
Republicans will be falling all over themselves trying to jump off Bush’s coattails. For the love of all you hold sacred, don’t let them do it.
Bush debuts on list of top problems facing the country
In what seems to be a polling first, the president has appeared on a list of the top problems facing the country. A CBS News poll conducted earlier this month showed George W. Bush tied with energy prices and homelessness for the sixth spot.
The April 6-9 CBS poll was open-ended, meaning those polled were free to name whatever issues occurred to them. A more recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll asked respondents to choose their top priority from a list of issues. The top responses in the latter poll were “energy and the cost of gas” and “the war in Iraq,” both of which were named by 19% of those polled. Health care was third at 14%, followed by the economy, illegal immigration and terrorism, all at 11%.
At 27%, Iraq was the top priority in the CBS poll, which asked, “What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?” The economy came second at 13%. President Bush garnered 4%, neck and neck with energy and homelessness and ranking just below health care and terrorism at 5% and 6%, respectively.
Bush was not among the choices offered to those polled by NBC. Perhaps a little lobbying is in order.
Democratic candidates should take some heart and some lessons from the polls. On all the major issues except perhaps Iraq, Democratic positions are far more popular than Republican ones. That’s the heart part. The lesson part is, run on them. Make health care an issue: the Medicare prescription benefit is going to explode by campaign season. Too many people don’t have coverage. US companies are crippled by health care costs that businesses in countries with national health care plans don’t face.
Make energy an issue: that’s not going to get any better either, especially if we blow up Iran, and Republicans have no energy plan beyond shoveling tax breaks at the richest companies in the country and digging up Alaska. People despise oil companies. People like conservation. Do some math.
Make the president an issue. Please: we now have documentary evidence that he’s one of the top problems facing the country. Hire Stephen Colbert if you have to; if there’s one sure thing in American politics, it’s that he’ll do a better job on your campaigns than Bob Shrum and the Shrumettes will. Although you’ll have to keep him away from the press.
Make national security an issue. As we all know, and as the press are now reporting, terrorism has increased dramatically since we invaded Iraq. And now even the administration admits that at least part of the increase arose because we invaded Iraq, and that the terrorist training ground we built there will be haunting us for years to come. Mention that.
If you supported the war, blame it on Bush. Sure, only a moron would have believed him, but plead out: you weren’t used to having a president who lies about anything more serious than a blow job. And he did lie. People are coming out of the woodwork to document that he lied. Everyone knows he lied; even people who support him know he lied, although they think that’s a good thing. So it’s okay: you can say he lied. Because, you know, he did. And he’s going to do it again with Iran.
National security: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Health care: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Energy plan: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Civil liberties: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Corruption: the president and the Republican Congress suck. Fiscal responsibility: the president and the Republican Congress suck.
Big government. Intrusive government. Incompetent government. Irresponsible government. Big, intrusive, incompetent and irresponsible government, brought to you by a president who ranks among the top problems facing the country and by the Republican Congress.
There is no way in the world that any Democrat with even the hint of a spine should come off second best in any race that’s even halfway comeptetive.
Republicans will be falling all over themselves trying to jump off Bush’s coattails. For the love of all you hold sacred, don’t let them do it.