She’s Half Right
The opening paragraph of Eleanor Clift’s column is half right:
His poll numbers may be sinking, but six months into his presidency, Barack Obama retains the admiration and the trust of voters. To be sure, they’re not as admiring of his policies. The attacks from critics about unsustainable debt and big government have taken their toll. Voters question whether his policies will work, and the legions of progressives who backed him wonder whether he has what it takes to work his will on Capitol Hill.
That’s a fanciful play on words. “They’re not as admiring of his policies”? Don’t climb too far out on that limb, Ms. Clift. Here’s what Rasmussen’s latest polling says:
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that voters trust the GOP more on economic issues 46% to 41%, showing little change from the six-point lead the party held last month. This is just the second time in over two years of polling the GOP has held the advantage on economic issues. The parties were close on the issue in May, with the Democrats holding a one-point lead.
That’s an indication that people don’t trust President Obama as much as Ms. Clift would like us to believe. Then again, that’s to be expected since she’s one of the most unapologetic liberal apologists in the liberal punditocracy, which is saying something considering that’s where Keith Olberman and Chris Matthews reside.
If there’s anything reliable in this world, it’s that Ms. Clift will defend anything that a Democratic president says, even if they’ve said something indefensible. I’m not convinced that Clift would recognize reality because she’s obviously not paying attention to reality now.
There will come a tipping point, especially if unemployment keeps rising, at which the American people turn a deaf ear to President Obama’s speeches. If that happens, which I think is imminent, Democrats will slam face first into a wall of angry voters.
The effects of Obama administration policy are already being seen in Rasmussen’s Generic Ballot Question:
Republican candidates lead Democrats for the second straight week in the latest edition of the Generic Congressional Ballot.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 41% would vote for their district’s Republican congressional candidate while 38% would choose the Democratic candidate. Support for the GOP remains unchanged this week, at its highest level over the past year, but support for Democrats dropped one point to tie its lowest level in the same time period.
I looked at the graphic charting the generic ballot question. It goes back to April, 2007. Democrats led at that point by 10 points. They’d been leading prior to that for quite some time. The March 7, 2009 poll was the first time Republicans led Democrats in a number of years. Now Republicans lead for the second straight week.
That polling reflects, I believe a sea change that’s been shaped by the Tea Party Movement. What’s fueling the Tea Party Movement is the Obama administration’s irresponsible spending, especially the bailouts and the stimulus bill.
Last weekend, Dana Loesch said that the Tea Party Movement had switched from ‘awareness mode’ to action. I’d tell the people that questioned whether the Tea Party thing was a one time event or if it had legs that this thing’s got legs and then some.
Couple the movement with the polling and it’s credible to say that the playing field for 2010 is changing fairly dramatically.
If political capital is measured by popularity, Obama still has plenty. What he doesn’t seem to have is a willingness to spend it.
If political capital is measured by the support his policies get, Obama’s political capital account will need a major infusion soon. Ms. Clift needs to realize that popularity is fleeting but that solid policymaking will always rebuild a politician’s political capital ‘account’.
Technorati Tags: Pundits, Eleanor Clift, Liberal Apologist, President Obama, Bailouts, Democrats, Tea Parties, Generic Ballot, Conservatism, Election 2010
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog