The Year of Campaign Chaos By Michael Barone
Politics ordinarily has a certain predictability. Yet presidential politics this year has often seemed to resemble what science writer James Gleick described in his book "Chaos."
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October 4, 2008
October 4, 2008
What They Told Us: Reviewing Last Week’s Key Polls - Week Ending October 3, 2008
Voters still had mixed feelings about the $700-billion financial rescue plan as it worked its torturous way through Congress last week, but for Republicans the country’s current economic mess is proving to be more and more of a drag at the polls.
October 3, 2008
The Palin-Biden Verdict By Debra J. Saunders
She passed. He passed. Palin fared better going against Joe Biden than Katie Couric.
October 3, 2008
A Heartbeat Away By Susan Estrich
For all the Republicans' complaints about Gwen Ifill, the moderator's questions were softballs compared to what Sarah Palin faced from Katie Couric. Ifill did not demand that Palin list (OK, how about just name more than one?) Supreme Court decisions. She did not push on the issue of foreign policy experience.
October 3, 2008
63% Say Wall Street, Not Taxpayers, Will Benefit From Bailout Plan
Sixty-three percent (63%) of U.S. voters say Wall Street will benefit more than the average taxpayer from the revised $700-billion economic rescue plan the House is expected to vote on today. Just 22% think the taxpayer will benefit more.
October 3, 2008
59% Agree With Ronald Reagan—Government Is The Problem
In his first inaugural address, President Ronald Reagan delivered a line succinctly capturing the sentiment that elected him: “Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.”
October 3, 2008
Democrats Winning the Registration Wars By Rhodes Cook
The presidential debate season is just underway. The polls are in flux. The issue agenda--which has already shifted in the last month from the Sarah Palin effect to "lipstick on a pig" to the nation's worst economic crisis since the Depression--may shift again before Election Day.
October 3, 2008
There’s More Here than Just the Bailout Package By Lawrence Kudlow
On the morning after Senate passage of the Treasury rescue bill stocks are down 200 points. So there is no silver bullet to our economic woes.
October 2, 2008
Generic Ballot: Democrats Take Nine-Point Advantage
The Democrats have modestly expanded their lead in the latest edition of the Generic Congressional Ballot. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that, if given the choice, 46% of voters would choose their district’s Democratic candidate, while 37% would choose the Republican candidate.
October 2, 2008
34% Say Veep Debate Key To Their Vote
Just over one-third of voters (34%) say tonight’s vice presidential debate is Very Important to how they will vote, and over half (54%) view Joseph Biden as the more skilled debater, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
October 2, 2008
Partisan Trends In September: 38.4% Democrats 34.4% Republicans
In September, the number of Americans who consider themselves to be Republicans increased a percentage point from 33.2% in August to 34.4% in September.
October 2, 2008
Law for Poor Didn't Cause Meltdown By Froma Harrop
Accomplished Googlers can probably find the original talking points off which dozens of conservatives made essentially the same case: The Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 caused the financial crisis.
October 2, 2008
Making the Bailout Less Toxic By Joe Conason
The initial failure to pass bailout legislation reflected a political system as bereft of confidence as the financial markets. President George W. Bush and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had no credibility to match the arrogance of their initial demand for absolute power in distributing $700 billion of public assistance (the old synonym for welfare).
October 2, 2008
Our Bair Necessity By Lawrence Kudlow
You know what? Hank Paulson may not be the most powerful financial person in the country right now. That honor goes to Sheila Bair, the chairman of the FDIC.
October 2, 2008
Bonanza. Bailout. Bonanza. By Debra J. Saunders
Who do I blame for this financial disaster? Let me count the villains. Start with President Bush and Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson.
October 2, 2008
Senate Sensibilities - The October 2008 Update By Larry J. Sabato
There are a few changes to report in the nation's Senate races since we last reviewed them in July-almost all of them in favor of the Democratic candidates. Yet the fundamental outlook hasn't changed terribly much. The Democrats will pick up a fair number of seats to pad their slim 51-to-49 margin. They are defending a mere 12 seats, and all their incumbents are running again. The Republicans have drawn the short straw, trying to protect 23 seats with five incumbents retiring in a tough political environment for the GOP.
October 2, 2008
The Importance of Branding: A Commentary
What we've all witnessed this week was more than a failure of Wall Street or of Washington, it was a catastrophic failure of branding.
October 1, 2008
There's Still Time, John McCain By Dick Morris
Trailing six points in Rasmussen’s poll, having fallen four points since he suspended his campaign last week, the question for John McCain is: Haven’t you learned anything?
October 1, 2008
Most Voters Say Children Motivate Mothers in Political Office
While some debate whether Sarah Palin as a mother of five can be vice president, 67% of voters say children are a motivation for women in political office, not a distraction, and nearly one-third (31%) believe being a good wife and mother is a qualification to run for higher office.
October 1, 2008
23% Say Their Firms Are Hiring, Up Two Points from Previous Month
The Rasmussen Employment Index, a monthly measure of U.S. worker confidence in the employment market, gained six points in September to 88.1.
