If It’s Broke, Maybe You SHOULD Fix It
That’s the message the Republican Party should take from the latest New York Times poll:
The latest New York Times poll is loaded with good news for the Obama administration and news that would be devastating for the GOP if it were ever able to penetrate the conservative-media echo chamber. While the public is still pretty pessimistic about the future, it’s considerably less so than it was before Barack Obama took office. Thirty-nine percent of respondents in the Times poll think the country is going in the right direction and 53 percent say the wrong direction, a substantial improvement from January, when the numbers were 15 and 79, respectively. Similarly, 20 percent of those polled think the economy is getting better and 34 percent worse, versus 7 and 54 in January.
But it’s the political numbers that are truly striking. Obama has a 66 percent approval rating, which is the highest this poll has recorded, while the GOP’s favorability is at 31 percent, the lowest the poll has recorded in 25 years of asking the question. Arguably more remarkable still is that, asked whether Obama or the GOP Congress would be more likely to make “the right decisions about the nation’s economy,” respondents broke for Obama 63 percent to 20 percent. That means that even within the 31 percent rump that holds a positive view of the GOP, at least a third trust Obama’s instincts on the economy equally or more. And why shouldn’t they? Despite Rush Limbaugh’s best efforts just 2 percent of respondents blame Obama for the state of the economy, compared to 33 percent who blame George W. Bush. (Wall Street and Congress come in for 21 and 11 percent, respectively.)
But since they’re Republicans, what they do instead is this (emphasis in original):
This morning on MSNBC, Joe Scarborough ranted about President Obama’s economic plans (even though 56 percent of Americans approve). His latest talking point: that Obama “has never received a paycheck” in his entire life:
SCARBOROUGH: Think about this: We have a president who has never received a paycheck. … This guy — think about it — he’s running Detroit, he’s running Wall Street, he’s gonna run other sectors of our economy. Andrew, he’s never received a check from a profit-making business in his entire life. Not one check. … Think about the radicalism of that!
Or this:
The floor can be a scary place for first-term lawmakers in both parties. Voices quiver as they read awkwardly from scripts drafted by their staff. Many are flustered by the rules, particularly those requiring lawmakers to avoid a direct dialogue with colleagues on the other side of the aisle by instead addressing whoever sits in the speaker’s chair.
Nervousness — and a lack of familiarity with the rules — make it tougher for new members to deflect political attacks when they find themselves in the cross hairs.
[...]
Since January, Republicans have been trying to capitalize on that uncertainty.The strategy took root during a briefing Cantor organized earlier this year with former Rep. Bob Walker (R-Pa.), whose mastery of floor procedure frustrated Democrats again and again during the GOP’s last stint in the minority.
As it evolved, Cantor and his floor team recruited members, like Foxx, to request time to speak when vulnerable Democrats, like Kilroy, offer amendments or bills. The goal is to put these Democrats on the spot to answer tough political questions on sensitive topics. Under the rules of the House, the targeted members are forced to answer the questions or risk embarrassment in front of C-SPAN viewers and YouTube surfers.
Or this:
