Insulting the Wal-Mart Voters: Always Bad Politics. Always.

RealClearPolitics ^ | 8/31/2006 | Ryan Sager

[Uncledave]

August 31, 2006 Insulting the Wal-Mart Voters: Always Bad Politics. Always. By Ryan Sager

Back in June, I wrote about a new species of "it" voter. We've had soccer moms, security moms, NASCAR dads, etc. etc. etc. Now, pollster John Zogby is hyping "Wal-Mart voters." Weekly Wal-Mart shoppers make up about one-fifth of the U.S. population, and Zogby found that 85 percent of them voted for George W. Bush in 2004; conversely, 88 percent of folks who never shop at Wal-Mart voted for John Kerry.

The point of my earlier column was that Wal-Mart voters suddenly seem up for grabs in this year's midterm elections. In the depth of Bush's unpopularity this summer, they were giving him a 35 percent approval rating -- compared to 45 percent from born-again Christians, 49 percent from NASCAR fans, and 54 from self-identified conservatives.

So, how have the Democrats chosen to capitalize on this political opportunity? By launching an all-out attack on America's most successful company: Wal-Mart.

Earlier this month, Sen. Joe Biden -- who dreams of running for president when he isn't gagging on his own ankle -- ranted to a crowd in Iowa for 15 minutes about the company's wages and health plans, according to the New York Times. "My problem with Wal-Mart is that I don't see any indication that they care about the fate of middle-class people," Biden said. "They talk about paying them $10 an hour. That's true. How can you live a middle-class life on that?"

Meanwhile, in the nasty Democratic primary in Connecticut, the only thing Sen. Joe Lieberman and netroots challenger Ned Lamont could agree on was that they both hated Wal-Mart. Hillary Clinton (who used to be on Wal-Mart's board when she lived in Arkansas, the company's home state) returned $5,000 in campaign contributions from the retailer last year, citing its health-care practices. And Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana, a former head of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council, told the New York Times earlier this month that, "Wal-Mart has become emblematic of the anxiety around the country, and the middle-class squeeze."

Well, it's also emblematic of something else: 1.3 million workers around the country who draw a paycheck from this supposed enemy of the middle class and hundreds of millions of loyal shoppers.

While the Democrats seem quite sure they've captured lighting in a bottle with this anti-Wal-Mart crusade, they might take a look at their recent record of political astuteness and try to sort out the wants of their labor-union base and the needs of average American swing voters.

In particular, a new poll out from the Pew Research Center might give Democrats more than a moment of pause. Despite a relentless anti-Wal-Mart campaign over the last few years -- funded by unions that haven't been able to organize Wal-Mart and that want to keep it from growing its grocery business -- Americans still have very positive views of Wal-Mart. And not just Americans generally, but Democrats specifically.

While the farthest reaches of the Left have bought into the anti-Wal-Mart campaign (53 percent of liberal Democrats hold an unfavorable view of the company), moderate Democrats and independents have not been swayed (by a margin of two-to-one, they think the company has a good effect on the country). Republicans, meanwhile, are virtually uniform in their admiration for the store (73 percent of liberal Republicans hold a favorable view of the company; 72 percent of conservative Republicans do).

What's more, not only do Americans generally like Wal-Mart, they also consider it a good place to work. Only 34 percent of Americans identified Wal-Mart as a "bad" place to work, and they were, again, primarily liberal Democrats.

What seems to be going on here is that, as usual, a fairly massive cultural divide between the leadership of the Democratic Party and the heart of middle America has led the anti-capitalism party astray. Liberals, city-dwellers, and the better-off are all less likely to have shopped at Wal-Mart than those who are lower-middle-class, live in rural areas (especially the South), or are socially conservative.

Rich, guilt-ridden liberals see Wal-Mart, and they see injustice. Then they see union members opposed to Wal-Mart as well, and they figure that this means most of America must be ready to run Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott out of town on a rail.

The truth is, the people in the middle, working Americans (most of them, by far, non-unionized) see Wal-Mart for what it is: a place to get stuff for cheap, to keep the family budget in balance.

To try to distract from this central truth -- to inadvertently suggest, even, that Wal-Mart shoppers are acting selfishly by abetting this evil corporation -- might fire up a few union activists who were voting Democratic anyway. But it's unlikely to win back the Wal-Mart voters. Ryan Sager is the author of The Elephant in the Room. He can be reached at ryan@realclearpolitics.com.

[lesser_satan]

bump for later

[lormand]

We are blessed by the stupidity of our political opponents.

[battlegearboat]

A local Walmart just gave a very generous donation to my VFW Post.

The local "Neighborhood Walmart" grocery store is a delight to shop in with the exception of their produce section which is usually wilted.

[P-40]

88 percent of folks who never shop at Wal-Mart voted

If I had a dollar for every time someone told me about how they would *never* shop at Wal-Mart when they actually do I'd be quite wealthy. It is like those liquor stores outside of some Baptist towns that somehow manage to do a booming business...

[hawkaw]

85% of Wal Mart shoppers voted for Bush43?

Got a link?

[callthemlikeyouseethem]

I honestly cannot imagine anyone who isn't at least a sometimes "wal-mart" shopper, apart from those for whom $$$ is absolutely not an object...

i save probably $200 a year just by purchasing coffee/cappuccino mixes at walmart vs. the grocery store!...;)

[Uncledave]

Only 34 percent of Americans identified Wal-Mart as a "bad" place to work, and they were, again, primarily liberal Democrats.

How many of these people actually WORKED at Wal-Mart? I'd say very few.

[Obie Wan]

I've got no choice,shopping at Wal-Mart is about the only place I can afford to after paying all the taxes Democraps have put in play !!!

[Paulus Invictus]

There are upwards of a million W-M employees out there, many who are voters. How many of their votes will go to RAT candidates, one wonders? On top of that, several of the nation's biggest billionnaires are named Walton. One also wonders how much of their political donations will now go to RATs? Then there are millions of W-M customers who love the low prices. Will they shoot down the dog that brings them the plump "savings pheasants?" Unlikely!

Seems to me that W-M could help the election go to the right by simply placing full-page ads in all local papers (they can afford to do this), showing how the RATs are trying to undermine the company and install unions for their employees, thus making it difficult for the company to continue to offer clients those great savings.

[massgopguy]

A DU'r was complaining about people who vote with their wallet yesterday. Must be a Trust Fund Baby to be able to afford such altruistic BS.
Does that mean they don't want to see ads of Pols with real people sitting at the kitchen table? Does that mean an end to Class Warfare? I doubt it.

[Xenalyte]

I'm your non-Wal-Mart shopper. Its Houston stores are filthy, cluttered, crowded, and loud.

[Utahrd]

Walmart = Sheriff Bart from Blazing Saddles

Most American shoppers = the old lady who bakes him a pie and says "You won't tell anyone I came here, right?"

[dead]

Its Houston stores are filthy, cluttered, crowded, and loud.

It's not so much shopping as foraging.

[Obie Wan]

Hey,your a Massachusetts GOP guy,me to.It's a shame we're going to lose the one office (Governor) we have in November huh ? I feel a State tax increase shoved down our throats not long afterward !!!

[Wristpin]

Evil whisper voice:

"Walmart....Diebold....Haliburton...Big Oil...Neocons"

[Xenalyte]

BINGO!

Next time I pass Wal-Mart, I'm gonna imagine wildebeest rampaging through the aisles looking for gazelles to chase from the water hole.

[SideoutFred]

I am on Zogby's polling surveys. I shop Walmart maybe twice a year and I voted for Bush.

I'd love to know if shopping at Walmart twice a year qualifies me as a "Walmart shopper" when I shop at Target about 50 times a year.

Zogby is a kook.

[callthemlikeyouseethem]

that's a good reason not to shop there...;)

[Brytani]

I'm not a fan of Wal-Mart, simply because of my area Wal-Mart is dirty, always messy at all hours of the day and night(boxes, crates, trash all over the floors),the parking lot constantly has carts all over, trash litters the parking lot and security is a joke.

Even when packed they may open 1/2 of the cashier stations they have available. It's not unusual to stand for 30 minutes or more to check out. On Monday night, I went into 3 stores looking for bottled water to prepare for Ernesto, all were sold out, however other people told me Wal-Mart had plenty of water left.

I was reluctant to go but didn't have much of a choice. The parking lot was packed, you could barely move through the store, however they did have water. After grabbing 20 gallons (20 items is the limit at the express checkout) I got in line.

Of 25 possible cashier stations, they had 12 open. The lines were literally to the back to the store. I stood, in the express lane, for 45 minutes before being checked out. The cashier? Not a hello, not a thank you, not even a kiss my rear end. Typical of my Wal-Mart.

To make matters even worse, their employees are incredibly rude, if you can find one they will flat our refuse to help you find something and have literally told me it's not their job to "direct" me through the store.

If you can even get the cashier to acknowledge you when you finally get up to the register, it's rare to be told thank you or even have your change counted back to you. In fact, I've gone through the lines many times when the cashier has not said a single word to me during the entire transaction.

Complaints about my store to corporate headquarters have done absolutely nothing. In fact, the store continues to decline even though the District Manager for the area, who I spoke with, acknowledged this particular store has THE highest complaint record of any Wal-Mart store in Florida.

On the cul-da-sac I live on, we have 8 houses, one evening we all got together for a cookout and our Wal-Mart came up, everyone of my neighbors has complained to either the stores management or to corporate headquarters.

Before anyone pulls the "if you don't like them don't shop there" comments, I rarely if ever step into the store and will not until they clean it up. I only go in an absolute emergency.

With that said, can you imagine the whining, complaints and complete breakdown dems would have if Wal-Mart lost enough business revenue that their tax payments were lowered? In fact, the amount of taxes Wal-Mart pays to the feds, state, county and local in every state is more then the GDP of any 3rd world country.

Yet the Dems still have to find something to complain about and could care less that their actions may hurt the economy (they'd love that with Bush in office) or increase prices for lower-income consumers they claim to care so much about.