New
Polls: Economy Still Bush's Fault, GOP Responsible For Gridlock
What seems obvious to us is news to Washington pundits:
A majority of
Americans believe that former President George W. Bush is more responsible than
President Obama for the current economic problems in the country, according to
a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.
Fifty-four percent of respondents said that Bush was more to
blame while 29 percent put the blame on Obama; 9 percent said both men deserved
blame while 6 percent said neither did. Among registered voters, the numbers
are almost identical; 54 percent blame Bush, while 30 percent blame Obama.
Independents, widely considered the most critical voting bloc
this fall, continue to blame Bush far more than Obama for the economic
troubles. Fifty-seven percent of unaffiliated voters put the blame on the
former Republican president, while 25 percent believe the blame rests more with
Obama.
Heck, even one in five Republicans say Bush is more responsible
than Obama for the state of the economy!
Why do i say it's news?
We've written for quite some time that the longer Obama is in office (and the longer Bush is out of it), the more likely it is that blame for the economy would shift toward him. But, these numbers suggest -- gasp! -- we were wrong.
Yes, you were. But credit Chris Cillizza for saying so.
And that's not all. From CBS/NY Times :
The public is not
assigning blame equally between President Obama and Republicans in Congress for
the partisan gridlock over key legislation.
In the latest New York Times/CBS News poll, 60 percent say Mr.
Obama is attempting to work with Congressional Republicans to try to accomplish
something; 27 percent say Republicans in Congress are making the same effort to
work things out with the president.
There is strong public support for politicians to start
cooperating. At least 80 percent -- regardless of party identification -- say
Republicans and Democrats should compromise some of their positions in order to
get things done.
You can fool the voters some of the time, but you can't fool
the voters all of the time. The idea that Obama is doomed because the
unemployment rate is xx% is a bit too simplistic. It's hurting him, but there's
a lot more going on than just a number, and it's pretty clear the public wants
better but doesn't blame Obama for getting us into this mess. That's a wasted
effort on Republicans' part.
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