If I've been absent...
Mea culpa - no posts in a while, but only because I've been neck deep in mischief. One piece of which came out today: arguably the largest survey in recent years (focus groups, 150 question survey of 1000 likely voting Independents, more focus groups and panel study post O'Donnell election) of Independents. First was an op-ed in the WSJ this morning, then one just posted in Politico.
Yet even those don't get to what I think are some of the most remarkable bits: like when asked what they liked most about the Democrats, 52% of respondents couldn't think of ANYTHING. Wow, that's damning.
Or the fact that in trying to assess intensity, we asked if there were a candidate with whom they agreed on everything but X, would they still vote for the candidate. The top two issues where they wouldn't were health care (48% said they wouldn't vote for a candidate with whom they didn't agree -- and of those 83% opposed ObamaCare, only 16% support), and the Ground Zero Mosque (46% -- of whom only 23% were from the Northeast.) There's some great stuff -- see the results at IWV.
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Jun '10
Re: If I've been absent...
The exception might be Independents that own golf courses. Obama has firmly established a tradition, that hard times are never so tough that you need to give up your tee time. The President does what he can to help.
May '10
Re: If I've been absent...
As has been discussed several times here on Ricochet, these Independents look a lot like Republicans, so the most interesting section of the study concerns their attitudes about the Republican Party. Clearly, at some point the leadership of the party has driven people away, or there is some social stigma attached to Rep. Party registration.
Anecdotal evidence amongst the Ind. voters I know indicates that they are very conservative or libertarian on fiscal matters but less committed to the social conservative issues, or at least, not as consistent.
May '10
Re: If I've been absent...
Heather, I missed you during the Delaware debate. I hoped that at least one contributor who respects Rush would chime in to defend against the Coastal Brigade. As pivotal as Rush has been to the rise of conservative voices in America, I'm often disappointed how many admirable conservative thinkers are uncomfortable with his blunt approach and with the ideas that appeal to so many listeners outside of D.C. I don't hold it against anyone if he or she dislikes Rush or Beck. But if someone can't at least understand their appeal, it seems that person also can't understand a large portion of American conservatives.