Posted on 02/23/2013 5:07:39 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Nothing new here, which is the most depressing part. Scroll halfway down the page at Pew and you'll find a table tracking shifts in public opinion on various programs over the last four years. There are noticeable jumps in support for cuts from 2009 to 2011 as America got a snoutful of Obamanomics, but we've leveled off since then — and in not a single category of the 17 tested is there 50 percent in favor of decreasing spending. In fact, in only three of those 17 categories (foreign aid, unemployment aid, and the State Department) is there more support for decreasing spending than increasing it.
The most hopeful graph at the link is one purporting to show that the public’s become “more austere” because the big lead that fans of raising spending used to have over fans of cutting spending is now a bit smaller. Alternate headline: “Blogger’s Friday-night drinking to start early.”
As you see, apart from foreign aid, support for cuts never reaches 35 percent. Even in the case of foreign aid, you have a slight plurality in favor of at least preserving the status quo rather than cutting. There’s not much hope in partisan differences either. Of the 17 categories, Democrats prefer cuts to increased spending in just two; independents in just three; and Republicans in nine — although even GOPers support increased spending for, gulp, Medicare and Social Security. I realize I’m making too much of this; when you ask people whether they want to cut a program without emphasizing countervailing considerations like deficits, obviously they’re going to be reluctant. These questions at their core are really just gut checks on how valuable the public views each program or agency to be. They see comparatively little value in diplomacy, which is why foreign aid and State get low ratings, and much more in veterans’ benefits. And yet, after four years of hot political rhetoric about exploding debt and a fiscal crisis on the horizon, you would think that the numbers for increasing spending, at least, would be minuscule. They’re not.
By way of partially explaining why, I’ll leave you with these two tweets.
#Journalism twitpic.com/c5zdss
— Ramesh Ponnuru (@RameshPonnuru) February 22, 2013
Warning this photo is graphic slasher stuff. Depicts “massive” cuts from #sequester. Scary. twitter.com/GroverNorquist…
— Grover Norquist (@GroverNorquist) February 22, 2013
The “education” graph is the most depressing. People really for that “for the chillin” BS.
Telling.
99 & 44/100 % PURE BULLSHIT.
On the bright side, Ann Arbor Michigan was approved for an $800,000 grant out of transportation funds to pave a bike path. /s
Its like living in a nation full of children who were never disciplined or told “No”.
These polls ask about cuts, not about freezes or slowing down growth (say, keeping at +1%).
These polls also don’t ask about bringing all troops home or pumping their money into the Fed.
This is why we are not a democracy.
This is why mob rule is a bad thing.
The people elect leaders.
The leaders are supposed to lead.
The leaders are supposed to be smart enough to know that fiscal responsibility is simply mandatory.
geez...are these the same polling folks that said Romney was gaining ground and could win? Or is this the one where you first have to admit you have more than 20,000 in credit card debt to qualify.
Watch the GOPES in the senate eat this up with Rove’s RINOS using this as tap city from funders. Republicans should not let these “polls” divert the drive to attack regime administration policy the counter attack should be waste and corruption.
I listened to the Peter Schiff show the other day and he made a good point that in all these polls people will always approve of raising someone elses taxes but he suggested the question be framed like should the Federal government raise YOUR taxes to pay for all this government? the taxes that YOU pay? And he said I bet they say NO!
His point was that even if you took all the “rich’s” money there is not enough to pay for all this government and that the burden always falls on those further down.
I think it’s plausible, maybe even rock-solid.
The overwhelming majority of Americans agree government spends too much money, but can’t pin down where they’d like to see cuts. There’s a disconnect, a failure of logic.
No one, including Congress, wants to make the hard choices that must be made if we are to avoid fiscal ruin. And why should they? They pay a higher price politically for being responsible than they do for being reckless.
Our fate is sealed.
I'm reasonably certain that one could find majority support in polls for: (a) slowing the rate of growth of spending in xyz; (b) putting major entitlements on a sustainable basis; (c) allowing people to create a real investment option with ownership rights and inheritability in Social Security; (d) putting people and their doctors, not bureaucrats, in charge of health care decisions; etc.
The poll cited here simply shows that people want basic social services, including a reasonable safety net. Well heck, so do I. The issue is whether we believe that big, government controlled, collectivist solutions are the most cost effective and workable. I don't believe that, and neither do most here. And neither, I think, does a majority of the American people, provided that the question is framed correctly.
I'm reasonably certain that one could find majority support in polls for: (a) slowing the rate of growth of spending in xyz; (b) putting major entitlements on a sustainable basis; (c) allowing people to create a real investment option with ownership rights and inheritability in Social Security; (d) putting people and their doctors, not bureaucrats, in charge of health care decisions; etc.
The poll cited here simply shows that people want basic social services, including a reasonable safety net. Well heck, so do I. The issue is whether we believe that big, government controlled, collectivist solutions are the most cost effective and workable. I don't believe that, and neither do most here. And neither, I think, does a majority of the American people, provided that the question is framed correctly.
Agreed.
Since when have we paid attention to left wing push polls? Ones designed, not to tell us what is actually going on, but to intimidate the wobbly RINOs?
stupid republicans AND Rove’s RINO’s...they should be running advertising -”WE already raised taxes on people and now the President says that is not enough...soon he want to tax you too!!” but they just play silly games about guns or immigrants and NEVER GET OR HOLD THE HIGH GROUND. How do you win the war staying on the beach? Storm the cliffs, attack!!
The only thing this poll shows is people didn’t want to show their ignorance of the issue so they said keep it the same.
This is a PEW poll. Do not accept it.
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