Poll - Obama approval/disapproval on DKos!

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Monday April 05, 2010 · 10:15 AM PDT

2010/04/05 · 10:15

I remember seeing a diary a while back (within the past 3 or 4 months; I'm sorry, I don't remember the diarist or the exact date) which contained some fairly negative remarks about the president's performance thus far, Rahm Emanuel's contribution to that performance, and a call for Howard Dean to take Rahm's place as COS. Then there was a poll pitting Dean versus Emanuel. Out of over 5000 Kossacks voting, Dean was favored by about 94% to 6%.

Although the poll obviously didn't reflect directly on the President's approval/disapproval, I was very surprised by the result because I had been noticing so many rec-listed diaries that were very favorable to the president, and to some extent, even Rahm Emanuel. I had also noticed that diaries critical of a particular administration policy would often contain a large number of very critical comments. So, I decided that the president's supporters must be just a great deal more vocal than those who were disappointed by his performance.

Poll

593 votes Show Results

How do you feel about President Obama's first year plus?

593 votes Vote Now!

How do you feel about President Obama's first year plus?

I think he has done a good job and I fully support him.

437 votes

I am somewhat disappointed, but I have hope he will improve.

110 votes

I am very disappointed in him.

46 votes

How the Media got suckered again!

cslewis

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Sunday September 07, 2008 · 8:28 AM PDT

2008/09/07 · 08:28

After the Palin "hail Mary" pass was revealed, the media actually started doing their job - actually vetting this relatively unknown person. And, of all things, pointing out that McCain had made a hasty, politically motivated decision, and that his campaign had not really vetted her. Everyone here was heartened that the press was finally doing its job.

Then, McCain's Rovian strategists suckered them again. Follow me below the fold.

cslewis

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Saturday May 24, 2008 · 8:31 AM PDT

2008/05/24 · 08:31

I think Senator Clinton's campaign, and possibly her future political prospects, have been irreparably damaged. If there ever was a time for Senator Obama to take the high road, it is now.

The best possible response to Hillary's RFK remarks would be for Barack to issue a public statement defending her - someting like:

cslewis

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Thursday September 09, 2004 · 6:15 AM PDT

2004/09/09 · 06:15

This In These Times article by Garrison Keillor is a must-read indictment of the modern Republican Party by our own "Will Rogers":

http://www.inthesetimes.com/site/main/article/979/

(I performed a keyword search to see if it had already been linked to in dKos but amazingly found nothing - sorry if it's already been posted.)

Brooks Editorial on Kerry

cslewis

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Monday August 23, 2004 · 9:08 PM PDT

2004/08/23 · 21:08

Go read it here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/24/opinion/24brooks.html

Although I disagree with him about 95% of the time, he seems to be close to dead on here. However, being 100% ABB, I'll still be voting for Kerry.

9/11 Changed Everything

cslewis

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Friday August 13, 2004 · 11:57 AM PDT

2004/08/13 · 11:57

According to the New York Times, "A Bush adminsitration official has leaked the results of a recent scientific study which has concluded that since the 9/11 tragedy, the earth has now become flat." The Times also states that "Some liberal scientists vehemently disagree with this conclusion."

However, according to the Times, "... a well-placed Republican congressman indicated that "Of course, this IS an election year, and we all know that usually thoughtful liberal scientists tend to take partisan stances on even the most basic changes that occurred after 9/11. They are even saying that the theory of evolution and threats of global warming still have merit after that tragic day. You know, I'm not really questioning their patriotism, it just seems to me that that they're trying to undermine our president's bid at a second term. Is it politics as usual? Yes, unfortunately, I'd have to say that that's exactly what it is.""

Sorry for the inanity - just couldn't resist a little Krugman-like redux on a slow Friday.

Is Bush a "redneck"?

cslewis

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Monday August 09, 2004 · 9:50 AM PDT

2004/08/09 · 09:50

I just waded through most of the comments regarding Bush's speech and Q&A before the Journalists of Color conference. As usual, most of the commenters were again amazed at the stupidity and inanity of his statements, and by implication, how anyone in their right mind could vote for such a hapless moron.

A common refrain expressed on this and other liberal blogs is that Bush fakes being a down home "good ole boy", i.e., "redneck". This rationale implies that his elite family origins, upbringing, and educational background contradict this image.

I would suggest that Bush is not faking the negative aspects of being a "redneck" - e.g., un or under-educated, racist, homophobic, chauvanistic, etc. These characteristics are obviously more a state of mind than circumstance. The only aspects of being a "redneck" that he needs to fake are the positive ones - e.g., rural, hardworking, honest, etc. (the constant images of his brush clearing in the 100 degree heat of west Texas are examples). The honesty part has been a little more difficult to spin.

I think that, yes, in some important ways, Bush truely is a "redneck" - and that this very important part of his base understands it quite well (in their "gut"). Thus, ridiculing him for his stupidity, incompetence, and general chauvinism doesn't resonate well with these folks.

Just some thoughts...

Karl Rove's Fatal Miscalculation!

cslewis

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Friday May 14, 2004 · 12:53 PM PDT

2004/05/14 · 12:53

I contend that the significant, recent changes in Bush's approval numbers are a direct result of Rove's (Bush's) attempts to coverup the prisoner abuse scandal. Until this latest effort, they have done a masterful job of covering up their problems, and letting time & the SCLM's short attention span take care of the rest. However, this time, it was a huge miscalculation to try this scenario again. In a comment to an earlier diary entry, I attempted to explain this contention by saying:

"the real point I'm trying to make is that by not making Rumsfeld & company accountable, they are making a serious mistake. By not doing the right (smart) thing, they are betraying a very important segment of their hard political support (the white, patriotic, blue collar workers who have steadfastly supported the war (& Bush)). I really feel that this betrayal is what has recently showed up in the polls - not necessarily just the abhorrence of the abuses. And, when the court martials of the reservists begin, this betrayal will really be brought home to them."

Class Warfare

cslewis

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Wednesday May 12, 2004 · 6:19 PM PDT

2004/05/12 · 18:19

I think this would be a good time for the Democrats (Kerry) to emphasize a major difference between the parties. The Republicans are the party of the rich and powerful. The Democrats are the party of the common, working man.

I think by now it is pretty obvious to even the least well-informed among the electorate that the prisoner abuse in Iraq was promoted by this administration's policies (e.g., Patriot Act, locating Gitmo off US soil, disregard for the Geneva Convention, etc.). But, instead of making high level administrators or commanders accountable for the atrocities resulting from these actions and policies, this administration and their Republican supporters (the rich & powerful) are attempting to shift the entire blame to low-level reservists (the common, working man).

By making this point very strongly in political ads and ongoing Democratic talking points, I believe we finally have something that will appeal to the so-called "Red Staters" who have, until now, ignored this basic difference between the two parties, and only focused on Republican-style wedge issues (e.g., anti-abortion, anti-affirmative action, etc.). At the risk of sounding condescending, I think that this "us versus them" (common, working man versus rich and powerful) approach would have much more appeal to the "Red Staters" than continually attempting to convince them rationally that it's not in their economic or social interest to vote Republican.

As much as I dislike the "us versus them" mentality (itself a wedge issue), I think the stakes are now high enough that this strategy should be employed. And, of course, their is a great deal of truth in this basic difference between the two parties.

Have we been Roved?

cslewis

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Monday January 26, 2004 · 1:06 PM PST

2004/01/26 · 13:06

I've been a Cross Fire watcher for some time now, and always beleived that Carlson & Novak were a very good barometer of Rove/RNC political strategies. Of course, much of the general strategy revolves around "up is down", "war is peace", "day is night" memes.

When Dean became the perceived front runner, the strategy was to say: "We'd LOVE to have him as the nominee". However, in their next breath, they would consistently recite all of Dean's perceived weaknesses ("angry", "north eastern librul", "he'll take away all your tax cuts"). Another example of this is the Iowa "latte-drinking" ad. If they truely wanted Dean as the nominee, they most assuredly wouldn't have done these things.

So, to answer my own question - yes, I think we have been "Roved". But, I don't think this strategy would have been entirely successful without the complicity of the SCLM and the "inside-the-beltway" dems. Although I think this complicity had been going on for a while, things seemed to change for the worse in December, when Begala, and then Carville, began really bashing Dean. And then, the SCLM jumped on the band wagon, culminating in the endless replaying of the "screach speech".

I believe that the SCLM and "inside-the-beltwayers" were, as usual, partially duped by the Rove memes (e.g., attacking Iraq made good political sense, Dean is angry/unelectable), but also, because populism/progressivism are pretty scary and a threat to the status quo.

Now, the Democrats will have a nominee that every one (Rove, RNC, DLC, SCLM & "insiders") can sort of agree on - and, by the way, four more years of Bushco (status quo).

RSS

Poll - Obama approval/disapproval on DKos!

How the Media got suckered again!

Unification Now!

Garrison Keillor on Republicans

Brooks Editorial on Kerry

9/11 Changed Everything

Is Bush a "redneck"?

Karl Rove's Fatal Miscalculation!

Class Warfare

Have we been Roved?