Reliance on faulty polls pushes Bush popularity ratings downward

[mwb970]

President Bush shouldn't worry. His poll numbers are nowhere near as low as The Washington Post, The New York Times, and other mainstream media would have you believe.

How come? First, the polls are not what they claim to be. They are not really polls of the American people or American voters. If you look at the fine print at the end of these stories, you will see that they were based on telephone interviews with around 1,000 people.

So when they say that "more than half of all Americans" feel the president is not doing a good job, they are really talking about just over 500 people - roughly, the number of Democrats in the sample.

Since Democrats are never likely to agree that Bush or any other Republican is doing a good job, we should focus on the other 500. If 30-plus percent of the total of 1,000 feel that the president is doing a good job that means that more than 60 percent of the 500 non-Democrats feel he is doing a good job.

http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/ci_3825785

This reminds me of Pickles' "I don't believe the polls" remark. First, all the polls say about the same thing, what's not to believe? Second, I don't remember any complaining about the polls that showed Bush with a high approval rating in earlier years, before the people caught up with his con game.

This article goes on and on in the same vein, desperately trying to convince itself (and us) that the abysmal poll figures actually prove that Bush is a huge success. Or something like that.

[Epiphany4z]

1. They believe

they create reality. If they say it loud enough long enough people will believe it.

[keith the dem]

2. This reminds me

of those TV ads where a women claims she is saving money by buying things she doesn't need on sale. We wonder why the repugs hate education. This all makes sense to people who don't understand math.

[electron_blue]

3. This reminds me of that Seinfeld show where Jerry argues to Elaine

that a week with the family won't *really* be so bad, bcs in fact it's not really a week! Don't count the travel days since you're not there a full day, don't count the times you're sleeping bcs you're unconscious, don't count the hours you're out at the golf course bcs then you're away from their house. Etc. Jerry manages to claim that they will only be spending something like 4 hours there, so it really isn't so bad!!

[Dawgs]

4. My favorite paragraph...

"So even if we take the polls at face value, when you include the wafflers Bush's support is probably 80 percent or more of the non-Democrats. He obviously needs to get closer to 100 percent, but 80 percent isn't too shabby when you consider the pounding he takes day after day in the media. It is clear that he has much more support and remains much more popular in the country than the polls indicate."

In one paragraph he makes up his numbers, disregards at least half of the population, and then decides the President has "much more support" just because he says so.

This might be the dumbest "article" I've ever read by a Bush apologist.

[Kierkegaard]

6. I agree. This is a breathtaking display of stupidity.

I have another theory: Since the 500 Repuds in the sample are never likely to admit that * or any Repud is doing a bad job, we should focus on the other 500. Then we come to the conclusion that 100% of the 500 non-Repuds feel * is a total failure, leaving a record-setting approval rating of 0.

Please...
:eyes:

[thecrow]

9. Voodoo mathematics!

What do you expect?

[NWHarkness]

5. They believed the polls when Bush was up n/t

[TheCowsCameHome]

7. I have to agree this time. The polls are definitely faulty.

No way does this fool have numbers as high as they are. Low 20's is even too high.

Pickles is right.

[marmar]

8. Call that the "cognitive dissonance" editorial...

The right wingers are cracking up, left and right. :crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

[C_U_L8R]

10. And KKKarl thinks his master is around 60% approval

Bubble boy is not only deceptive.. he's delusional

[yellowcanine]

11. My favorite quote from the article..(Note - It IS the Salt Lake Tribune)

"No matter how "scientific" these polls claim to be, it defies common sense to suggest that 1,000 randomly selected interviewees represent the collective opinion of nearly 300 million Americans."


I guess Mr. Adams has never heard of statistical sampling. Or maybe in faith-based science statistical sampling isn't trusted. Much better to say, "it defies common sense." Ah yes, that old argument winner - it defies common sense.

[mwb970]

12. Apparently evolution defies common sense as well.

You're right, they use that "argument" a lot.

[yellowcanine]

13. Exactly - the fundies use that argument all the time against evolution.

In fact, that is the Intelligent Design argument in a nutshell. It defies common sense. We can't explain it so it didn't happen.

[patcox2]

14. He's saying democrats aren't americans and can be ignored.

Vile crap.

[CJCRANE]

15. So

when Bush was at 90% after 9/11 he was really at 50% because half the people are Democrats?

And if half the population are Republicans and half Democrats and they never change their opinions then common sense dicates there should be two Presidents or simply alternating Dem/Repub presidents.

[Beetwasher]

16. My Simple Message To The Author:

You are perhaps the dumbest mutherfucker on the planet. Please don't breed.

[No DUplicitous DUpe]

17. Amazing, Zero logic. What an Idiot!

What a fool believes...

[Jack Rabbit]

18. Oh, I get it

Democrats don't count.

Only Republicans count.

Therefore, one should only poll Republicans.

And Diebold will help you vote like a Republican.

[struggle4progress]

19. If Bozo can't count, it's fine with me: leave him in his fantasy bubble.

But in fact moving a central 1/6 from pro-* to con-* drops Dictatortots off the charts: figure 1/3 Dem, 1/3 Ind, 1/3 Rpb. * barely got 1/2 the popular vote in 04, so counting none of the Dem and all of the Rpb, suggests * just about split the Ind in half; still counting none of the Dem, and assuming Iraq &c has cost Dimson the other half of the Ind, gets * down to about his current popularity level.

[Memekiller]

20. Is this a joke?

It has to be, right?

[Skittles]

21. think about how stupid bush supporters are

have your answer now?

[depakid]

22. There are a lot of good reasons to question cheap media polls

and yet this idiot doesn't stumble onto a single one of them....

Amazing. Only a Republican could manage that.