GOP approval ratings plummet as they ignore the economy

[DearAbby]

The polls tell the tale. Republican approval ratings are plummeting as the American people see them ignoring the economy and wasting time with political stunts that have zero chance of passing. NBC’s First Read summed it up: “The House GOP’s first impression isn’t on jobs.”

As Republicans choose to spend the first days of the new Congress trying to re-open the donut hole and take away tax breaks from small businesses, two polls in the last 48 hours show that they are severely out of step with the American people.



· CBS News poll: “House Republicans may be focused on fulfilling their campaign promise to work to overturn the health care reform law, but a new CBS News/New York Times survey finds that a plurality of Americans prefer they focus instead on creating jobs. The poll finds 43 percent of Americans believe the most important thing for the new Congress to focus on is job creation - compared to just 18 percent who say the top priority should be health care…The Republican Party is seen favorably by 40 percent of Americans and unfavorably by 49 percent.”

· NBC News poll: “Only 25% say the Republicans in Congress will bring the right kind of change (versus 42% who said that about the Dems in Jan. 2007, and 37% who said that about the GOP in Jan. 1995)… And then there's this: The GOP's fav/unfav has gone from a net positive in December (38%-37%) to a net negative now (34%-40%). ‘I think this has been a pretty short Republican honeymoon,’ McInturff says. Hart adds, ‘I think the president has the benefit of the doubt, and the Republicans -- based on this data -- have the burden of proof.’”

More
http://democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=330476&

[liberal N proud]

1. Voters Remorse

[gratuitous]

6. Shouldn't be any, really

The Republicans ran in the 2010 election as the party of Not The Democrats. They didn't have any proposals, really; they just shouted and gesticulated and called everything bad, Bad, BAD. The Democrats didn't help themselves by, you know, standing for anything, so the Republicans' task was that much easier. But how can the voters be remorseful over handing control of the House over to the Republicans? They're getting nothing, which is exactly what they were promised.

[DearAbby]

2. Just dicking around

while people are really suffering, these fools have no idea how ugly it is...or maybe they do.

[TheCowsCameHome]

3. They should get SERIES!!?!, and have more symbolic votes

They are a bunch of do-nothings anyway.

[NYC Liberal]

4. I'd like to know who exactly didn't know this was going to happen.

I'd also like to know how many of those who are pissed off at what the Republicans are doing now voted in November.

[tblue37]

5. The Repubs claim that "America" sent them to DC to repeal the Health Care Act, but in fact, the

voters in 2010 represent just a tiny percentage of the American people--and they were voting either as Teabagging wackos or as "Independents or "moderates" who were pissed that Obama and the Dem House and Senate didn't go far enough left to meet their needs. IOW, they were voting against Dems (though they did expect too much too fast, considering the mess CheneyBush left and considering the fact that the Dems were divided by DINO Blue Dogs. It was incredibly dumb to send back the same party that caused the mess, but the American voter is pretty dumb--and impatient and ill-informed. For example. they thought their taxes had gone up under Obama and the Dems. They are bamboozled by FOX News, so they vote based on lies.

[Richardo]

7. that's not ill-informed, that's MISinformed

And the Dems did precious little to set the record straight IMO.

[Beartracks]

8. GOP not interested in improving economy...

... while Obama still in office, because the credit would accrue to him. Anyhow, they made no bones about the fact that their #1 priority has always been to "get Obama" -- the only reason they go after the Health Care reform law is because it's one of Obama's signature accomplishments (that and it's easy to misrepresent to the public). Ironically, even if they WERE interested in job creation and economic improvement... Well, the mess we're still in is already testament to the GOP's abilities in that department.

----------------

[glinda]

9. Hope people do not forget the Tea people are the extreme of that even.

[pnorman]

10. FDR, to whom Obama is frequently (and pejoratively) compared to here on DU,

appointed more than a few prominent Republicans to federal positions, and/or consulted with them. He also made some pretty shameful "arrangements" with the Southern Democrats (many blatantly racist), as well as some pretty corrupt political machines in the North. The purpose was to maintain the momentum of the New Deal. He largely succeeded, but some of those compromises haunt us to this day.

Obama is just into his third year of office, and does NOT have the MASSIVE electoral advantage that FDR had in 1932 or 1936. Highlight the opinions of Bernie Sanders, Dennis Kucinich and others; that's what DU is for. But to seriously work to primary Obama out in 2012 would be a DISASTER at many levels. And some, like Climate Change, may be beyond recovery.

[pnorman]

11. My error! I made this reply to the wrong thread.

It was intended for the one that was bewailing the fact that Obama had added a Republican to one of his advisorial committees.

But (IMO) the comment is still valid here.

[saras]

12. They're not ignoring the economy

They are working hard to do just what they promised.

They never, as far as I can tell, promised to make the economy better for any significant number of people.