It is understandable that those who think President Bush has done a poor job
want to replace him with a Democrat they think might do a better one. What
is not understandable is why voters, who think Congress has performed
poorly, would vote to keep the Democratic majority in place and, according
to many polls, expand it.
The latest Rasmussen tracking poll finds that a pathetic 9 percent of the
public think Congress is doing a good or excellent job, a record. A majority
of voters - 52 percent - think Congress is doing a poor job, which ties a
record.
Even Democrats disapprove of the performance of the Congress led by their
party. Among Democratic voters, approval of Congress fell from 17 percent to
13 percent in the poll. Unaffiliated voters are the most critical of
Congress with just 3 percent giving it a positive rating and 63 percent of
these independents saying Congress is performing poorly.
Given these astounding figures, why do polls show that as of now a majority
of voters intend to vote for the Democratic candidate in House and Senate
races? In a recent McLaughlin and Associates poll, 43 percent said they
would vote for the Democrat and just 34 percent would vote for the
Republican. Twenty-three percent were unsure.
A USA Today/Gallup Poll taken in mid-June found that 52 percent favored
Democratic candidates and 42 percent favored Republicans. That's down from
55 percent for Democrats and slightly up from 41 percent for Republicans in
a February poll.
Polls taken by ABC News/Washington Post and NBC News/Wall Street Journal
reflect similar numbers.
How can this be? If a contractor working on your house fails to do the job
and overcharges you in the process, does it make sense to keep paying the
same company while it adds additional incompetents and crooks to cause
further damage?
The reason Republicans don't benefit from voter disaffection with Congress
is that Republican incompetence - ranging from sexual indiscretions to
illegal activities - remains fresh in their minds. Republicans promised they
would do things differently. They'd bring "change" to Washington (always be
careful when you hear politicians talking like that). Instead, Republicans
caught the same Potomac fever that infected the Democrats who ran the House
for 40 years prior to 1994 and the Senate, off and on, for much of that
period.
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