According to the latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, the Democrats have drawn even with the Republicans among registered voters. The reason?
The movement towards the Democratic Party is due to increased enthusiasm amongst African-American (6% increase) and Latino voters (11% gain).
In other words, the progressive base is coming home. No, not this progressive base, which seems to have no representation in Congress. It’s the base that elects the vast majority of the Progressive Caucus in Washington.
Things will get better if the youth vote gets engaged. That is where the enthusiasm gap is still killing us. And the reason? They are not pissed off like everyone else.
The latest NBC/WSJ poll found that young people much less enthusiastic about voting in the midterm elections than older people. Just 35% of those 18-34 years-olds are enthusiastic about the midterm elections, versus 65% of seniors.
A Congressional Connection poll may have found the reason: When asked if they were satisfied “with the way things are going in this country today,” 54% of 18-29 year-olds said “yes,” compared with just 28% of 30-49 year-olds, 22% of 50-64 year-olds, and 19% of 65+ year-olds.
And, so…
That disparity is a chief reason why Obama on Tuesday traveled to a rally at the University of Wisconsin, while Vice President Joe Biden visited Penn State.
It also tells me that, somewhat counterintuitively, social issues should be a bigger part of the Democratic message. The reason the youth vote is so solidly Democratic is because they don’t like racism, homophobia, or sexism. Yeah, I know it’s all about the economy, but its important that young voters hear about how the GOP has fundamentally intolerant views and completely anachronistic values. In support of this view, notice that the Republicans have made the strategic choice to downplay social issues in this cycle because they think their base is already sufficiently motivated. If they want to unilaterally disarm on the issue, we should take advantage of it. Perhaps this can be done in a targeted way, so the message mainly goes to those intended to receive it.
You couldn’t be more right, which is why they need to be solidified in the Democratic party now. The libertarian message is very dangerous right now because it has the possibility of snatching away young people.
For example, the other day during a Young Dems meeting, this one girl was like “What are his views on gay marriage and stuff? Because those are the main things I care about.” She then went on to say that her roommates are conservative but want gay marriage legalized, and so she said “Oh, well you’re not so bad then.”
Gay marriage, drugs and intolerance are a big deal, and if the libertarians come along and snatch these voters now, they’ll be snatched forever.
Why the Democrats don’t understand this, I don’t know, but they need to stake a position now on gay marriage. No more waffling and dawdling. My generation doesn’t give a fuck, the RR has already lost. Be on the right side of history, Mr. President.
This guy gets it, why won’t everyone else?
I enjoy the fact that Mitch McConnell and BP both share a 12% approval rating.
You’re dead on about the Libertarian (cap L — they’re by no means libertarians) potential. The Ayn Rand/Rand Paul hokum has easy appeal to the inexperienced, just like any old whore. The Dems are afraid to take on the “religious” right, especially now that so many of them let themselves be cowed by charges of Islamism, etc. The fact is that the Republican Party is as far from liberty-loving as you can get. Markos does a strong service with his American Taliban meme. I hope some of that gets through to the over-satisfied and under-informed young.
Right, seabe. It’s so simple, so obvious, openly embrace gay rights and gay marriage, abolish DADT, What is keeping the man back, what is Obama’s inhibition on this issue? Why doesn’t he get over it and go with the times. Here we definitely see a man who seems to have a deep, personal aversion to the recognition of gay equality, which has obviously to do with sex. Sometimes pop psychology is useful. If not, what is keeping this intelligent, compassionate man in a state of petrification about the issue?
What keeps Congress from approving of medical marijuana? That has just as much support nationally that repealing DADT does. It’s the Beltway Bubble; they still think it’s an issue that they can’t touch, politically, even though it’s popular.
Getting rid of the Very Serious Political Strategists would be nice, for one. They keep telling the President not to touch the issue, it’s too dangerous, etc. Really, though, even though it’s barely over 50% to support gay marriage, does anyone seriously think the Republicans are going to use this issue anymore in the future? Maybe in certain districts or states, but in general, I don’t think people will give a damn.
If gay marriage were legalized tomorrow, in one year, it would be a non-issue.
For someone who understands the issue of church and state as well as Obama, and as I’m pretty sure he approved of gay marriage on a survey way back in the day, it’s clear the issue isn’t an aversion to gay people; it’s just politics.
If the Democrats officially staked out on gay marriage and were the party to legalize it, though, they would solidify a generation or two’s vote for a long time, guaranteed. I’m not lying when I say that. Equality among women and gays, civil liberties and the environment are our issues. Nothing else is more important.
Well, if you’re right and it’s just politics then I can only conclude that Mr. Obama is not very good at politics. Because here he has an enormous victory being handed to him on a golden platter but he’s not relishing it. What is keeping this man back on gay and other issues? He is so generally inhibited. The man is losing his chance, and the Americans are losing their chance. Something has to give.
If you didn’t notice, the Senate Republicans just filibustered the historically sacred Defense Appropriation Bill in order to keep away the gay.
Well, that doesn’t surprise me. But then why doesn’t he defy the Republicans, take a chance, go out on a limb, show his colors? That’s what I mean and that’s what’s creating all the negativity about him. I support him, who else is there at the moment?, but really, he can at least make the effort to bridge the ‘enthusiasm gap’. He and his aides need to recognize that the problem doesn’t lie entirely on one side. Anyway, I can’t stand Jame Hamsher. I used to read FDL until I realized that she has no close contact with the nitty gritty of the USA—the poor and the disadvantaged. She lives in her own privileged bubble. I have a tendency to digress.
That would be a great way to depress the Black vote…
So if the progressives you don’t like are not represented in Congress and are ineffectual why spend so much time attacking them?
Are they hurting Obama, or are they just ineffectually whining?
Yes, they’re damaging him. Did you read the piece I did on Daou? Did your read either of his pieces?
This is not about your boyfriend Obama; it’s about the country, you jerk! Who gives a damn what damages Obama? At the end of the day, that (shell of a) man is extremely comfy and protected by armed forces.
Put your pompoms away, the Chinese-made plastic is making your “reasonable and serious” mask fall away.
hey, dipshit.
When the president is hurt, the party is hurt, and when the party is hurt, they lose seats and perhaps even control of Congress.
</rocket science>
This is so pointless. The president has done far more to hurt the party himself than anyone else. But we’ll never see eye-to-eye on that.
That’s why he’s the most popular politician in the country and Pelosi and Reid are competing with whooping cough in their approval ratings. Yeah, like Obama had more to do with voter dissatisfaction than the prior occupant’s shitpile or the Kent Conrads, Joe Liebermans, and Ben Nelsons of the world. I don’t even take you seriously anymore.
Then why do you bother to answer? TBH, I’ve been curious about that for sometime.
Having watched video online of Obama’s speech in Madison, I detect the fine hand of David Plouffe at work.
Heart of Obama’s message: “If everyone who voted in 2008, shows up to vote in 2010, we will win.” Also, “Change is not a spectator sport.”
Yep, I’m glad that guy slipped his handlers.
And 26,000 screaming Badgers can’t be wrong.
The young uns’ I know seem to give Obama a lot of slack on the economy. For one thing, his initiatives on student loans, insurance, and science directly benefit them. Support for tech, alternative energy, and general rationality is well-received. The dissatisfaction comes mostly from civil liberties issues — foot dragging on Net neutrality, the metastasizing police state, the apparent deferral to the “security” interests.
I have to wonder if part of the undue satisfaction with the status quo derives from Obama’s excessive embrace of “bipartisanship”. He’s given the GOP a level of credibility/respectability it does not deserve. The reality is that they are monstrous crazy and a danger to everything most young people value. Dems need to put out that message, and quick.
It can’t be left to Obama — he has to be president. I thought his Madison speech hit all the right notes, but the coverage as usual missed the important parts. It’s a weird situation: the election will be won or lost on getting one constituency over their misplaced satisfaction with the status quo, and getting the angry constituency to redirect its rage against the cause of what went so wrong. One needs to get madder and the other has to get calm enough to vote rationally. Obama can set the message, but it will take much more than just him to get it across. Big job, but it has to be done, now.
Then make sure you just stay home and don’t vote while the republicans and their teabagger tools get elected to Congress. We can certainly look forward to daily televised committee hearings on “serious topics” such as the subliminal satanic messages of Brian Wilson’s “SMiLE” CD masquerading as vital policy debate. No fucking thanks…
Yes Yes Yes. Have you not noticed that the right wing is getting is ass whooped when it comes to equality? Dems should be pressing on this more and hurting republicans with it.
If you think Republicans have been downplaying social issues, you’ve not seen what their local operatives are up to.
Racism, sexism, homophobia might be 2012 issues but they don’t get addressed by arguing about them before a campaign. They get addressed by passing the legislation first and when the sky doesn’t fall then addressing those issues. And an issue in this cycle is that the candidate might not want to uncork those issues in his/her district.
Issues are set for this election. The kids are motivated because of organization not media; the rally in Madison did not just spontaneously appear; it was organized. We are already six weeks into GOTV activities and have five weeks to go. The effort to bank early voting votes has already begun. It is all about getting the turnout, enthused or not, from this point onward. Getting people in the car and go voting. Getting a bus together and all go voting together. With early voting, you can turn people out with, “Why not now? We’ve got the time.”