Poll explains what the Mass election was NOT

[ProSense]

New Poll Explains Massachusetts

by papermoon

There has been up until now a lack of polls explicitly dealing with what the pundits and politicians are most curious about, which is what exactly voters were asking for in the MA-SEN.

A new Washington Post Harvard Poll shows what it was not:

* It was not a call to return to the Bush years. 63 percent of Massachusetts voters thought the country is on the wrong track, but that is still down from 83 percent in 2008.

* It was not a sign Obama has made no progress on the economy. 45 percent say they are very worried about the economy, but that is down from 55 percent in 2008.

* It was not a sign the government should do less. 50 percent thought the government should do more. That was down from 63 percent in 2008, but given that we've had mostly the bailouts since then, it's a surprise it hasn't gone down more. Voters want government action for them, not for Wall Street.



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[Phx_Dem]

1. That is exactly the opposite of what the media has been feeding people.

Claiming it was a referendum on Obama, his policies and the Democrats. The MSM is so fucking inept they couldn't find their own ass with both hands and a flashlight.

[DKRC]

8. The M$M is staying on message

as they do exactly what they intend to do:

"... keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda, ..."

Corporations are adept at marketing and the M$M is owned lock, stock, & barrel by the corporations that want us all to believe their marketing.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

2. GOP hypocritical on suddenly worrying about deficit (didn't worry during Bush years)

how come GOP are so worried now - they didn't seem to worry when Bush was running up a $3 trillion deficit?

Poll: GOP Voters More Worried on Deficit
By Jonathan Cohen
Deep public worry about the federal budget deficit has jumped since December, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, upping the ante on the White House's fiscal responsibility summit that kicks off later this morning.

Among those adults aged 40 and up, almost all express concern, and 68 percent are "very concerned," while those under 40 are decidedly less worried (45 percent very concerned; it's 38 percent those aged 18 to 29).

However, sentiment about the government's account imbalance has political as well as generational and economic roots: The entire rise in concern about the deficit over the past two months has been among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents.

Overall, 59 percent of Americans are now "very concerned" about the size of the federal budget deficit, 10 percentage points higher than in a Post-ABC poll in mid-December. Among Democrats, though, top level concern has slipped four points, despite the billions in new governmental outlays passed by the new Democratic president and the Democratically-controlled Congress.

By contrast, 74 percent of Republicans in the new poll expressed grave worry about the deficit, 29 points higher than in December when George W. Bush held the reins.

Sixty-one percent of independents are very concerned about the deficit, up 12 points from December, with the increase almost entirely among those who said they tend to side with the GOP.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/02/23/poll_gop_voters_more_worried_o.html?wprss=44

[graywarrior]

3. Misconception runs rampant here at DU, too

Which is why I rarely post here any more.

[jpak]

4. 100% of Dems that voted for Brown are 1000% idiots

that explains everything

[kentuck]

5. This is a very telling and important poll...

The Party which is more intelligent and interprets it correctly will be the one to profit from the true meaning of the Massachusetts election.

It was not a vote against Obama and the Democrats per se and neither was it a vote for the Republicans per se. It was a vote against the status quo and a vote for needed change. Obama promised change but did not deliver - at least not in the issues that mattered to the voters.

The challenge for the Democrats is to prove to the independents and Democrats that have lost favor with the Party that they are the best choice to put the country on the right track. How do they do that? That is the question.

First of all, the people have to be able to compare the Parties and issues side by side. They cannot compare them separate from each other, thru the propaganda of the MSM. Obama has to bring the Republicans into the debate, some way or other. The Republicans do not want to take a stand on the issues. They want to stand pat as the Party of "NO". That must change. They must be forced to vote on several issues that are very popular with the people. They must show that they are willing to walk the talk. That is the challenge for the President and the Democratic Party. They must smoke out the Republicans and get them to take a stand and vote on the issues that are important to the people. Otherwise, they will continue to obstruct and to obfuscate thru the next election.

[Champion Jack]

6. kicked for later

[dkf]

7. 56% voted on hcr. 32% voted based on the candidates.

It wasn't a vote against Obama because Obama isn't seen as responsible for it. It was a vote against the senate. And the candidates themselves were
the least important factor.

[FrenchieCat]

9. Valuable information

for those of us who choose not to allow the corporation's media
to tell us what 'what' is .

They really are becoming an activist press,
much like our activist supreme court justice.
They want us to remain passive,
while they manipulate the shit out of us.

[Clio the Leo]

10. thanks....

... I'm starting to think the loss may have had something to do with the fact that Coakley ran the worst campaign in the last five months. :)