Poll: Mass. Voters Protested Against Weak Wall Street, Health Care Policies

[Joanne98]

Massachusetts voters who backed Barack Obama in the presidential election a year ago and either switched support to Republican Senate candidate Scott Brown or simply stayed home, said in a poll conducted after the election Tuesday night that if Democrats enact tougher policies on Wall Street, they'll be more likely to come back to the party in the next election.

A majority of Obama voters who switched to Brown said that "Democratic policies were doing more to help Wall Street than Main Street." A full 95 percent said the economy was important or very important when it came to deciding their vote.

In a somewhat paradoxical finding, a plurality of voters who switched to the Republican -- 37 percent -- said that Democrats were not being "hard enough" in challenging Republican policies.

It would be hard to find a clearer indication, it seems, that Tuesday's vote was cast in protest.

continued>>>
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/20/obama-backers-more-commit_n_429673.html

[joeybee12]

1. It's the economy, stupid n/t

[QC]

2. Amazing. Democrats are now seen as the party of Wall Street.

Has there ever been a more monumental political blunder than this one?

[TxRider]

4. It would be hard to find one.

[QC]

17. I've been trying to think of one for a while and nothing is coming to me. n/t

[Jennicut]

3. Well, that is kind of obvious. In a two party system, uniformed voters take it out on who

is in charge when they are upset at the status quo.

[krabigirl]

5. Oh, and those Republicans, they don't help Wall Street at all!1!1

They are all about helping main street!!! idiots

[jgraz]

9. And whose fault is it that those "idiots" think that way?

:shrug:

[FiveGoodMen]

15. Most voters aren't very savvy

They voted for change.

They didn't get any.

They are trying something else.

[jgraz]

6. Please, Dems. Learn the right lesson from this defeat.

If the continue as they have, this loss will be a drop in the bucket compared to what's coming in November.

[Javaman]

7. The one thing Democrats are good at is...

snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

[jgraz]

8. And don't forget

Snatching more defeat from the jaws of defeat.

[Hardrada]

12. True that!

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

10. So a significant number of Mass residents are media dupes.

Figures.

[jgraz]

13. Yes, because it was the media who was flogging support for the Public Option

:eyes:

http://act.boldprogressives.org/cms/sign/mapollresults?action_id=2742153&akid=.385504.FnUA87


VOTERS OVERWHELMINGLY SUPPORT THE PUBLIC OPTION

82% of Obama voters who voted for Brown
86% of Obama voters who stayed home


Sounds like the MA voters knew exactly what they were doing.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

16. I guess they didn't really want the public option that bad.

If they support Brown.

[jgraz]

19. Don't you get it? Many saw a Coakley win as dooming the Public Option

The Senate has always had the ability to pass a Public Option via reconciliation. They chose not to so they could use the 60-vote myth as an excuse to make the bill as corporate-friendly as possible. MA voters saw through their bullshit.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

20. Listen, I really believe that people who vote Brown or stayed home...

are incredibly stupid shit-for-brains rejects of humanity...

But I think even they are stupid enough to think that supporting Brown would in any way help the odds for a public option.

If they voted for Brown or stay home, then they don't really want the public option.

[jgraz]

21. No, I think they were pissed and wanted to stick it to the Dems

In reality, what's one fewer Dem Senator if they can't do shit with 60?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

22. I'll believe they wanted to stick it to the dems.

But none of them give a shit about health care or any other progressive issue.

[Edweird]

11. Man, if only someone could have warned them.......

[KamaAina]

14. And of course Brown is going to go after Wall Street like a rabid ferret.

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[Arkana]

18. And yet they voted for the guy who wants to deregulate Wall Street

and do nothing on health care?

No. They voted for the other guy because Martha Coakley did nothing to promote herself or even run a visible campaign until the last three weeks.

[Individualist]

23. Truman was right

"Given the choice between a Republican and someone who acts like a Republican, people will vote for the real Republican all the time."

[Grand Taurean]

24. And they voted for the schmuck who opposes regulating the markets?

:wtf:

I was once asked to run for public office and I declined knowing the average voter is too simple to understand the complex issues at hand.
I was not interested in running against a snake oil salesman.

[ellie]

25. So they elected a repuke

who doesn't want Wall Street punished or health care for everyone? And who belongs to a party whose answer to everything is tax cuts and deregulation? Isn't that cutting off your nose to spite your face? At this point, I don't think the votes in MA are very smart if these, indeed, are their reasons for voting for that repuke.

[rucky]

26. Are they going to get stronger policies with Brown?

this doesn't make a lick of sense. I think Brown was simply more likable and anything policy related is just rationalization for the shallow voter impulse.

[jgraz]

27. Perhaps.

If the Democrats get the message, "Perform or Lose," this may result in better legislation going forward.