Republicans Stand to Lose By Following Advice of the Right Blogosphere

Texas Rainmaker has an unrealistic view of public opinion as they believe It’s Republicans’ Game to Lose. They misinterpret three statistics, and leave out key details of the polls. They note that an Ipsos Poll reports that 58% of the people think that the tax system is unjust. Considering that the tax system has been under the control of Republicans, and Republicans have rewritten it to transfer wealth to the ultra-wealthy, this issue certainly won’t help Republicans. Texas Rainmaker leaves out key poll findings such as that “A majority of people said the middle class, the self-employed and small businesses pay too much in taxes, the poll found. And they think those with high incomes and big businesses don’t pay enough.” In other words, a majority finds that the people whose taxes the Republicans want to cut the most are already not paying enough.

Their next statistic is that the Pew Research center found that “96% of the public says they believe in God or some form of Supreme Being” and extrapolate from this to believe that abortion and gay marriage will be big losers for Democrats. The problem with this logic is that of the 96% who believe in a Supreme Being, not all believe in the Judeo-Christian God. Of those who do, most do not follow the fundamentalist views of the religious right, or support the use of government to impose religious views upon others. The Pew Research Center also found that Americans are becoming more liberal on social issues, regardless of belief in a Supreme Being. A majority supports abortion rights and civil unions. Even opposition to gay marriage has fallen from 64% in February 2004 to 51% earlier this year.

Finally they think that immigration will work for them. Most pundits still find the political ramifications of immigration murky, but there is far more reason to believe the issue will divide Republicans and cost them votes than help them.

Republicans may very well hold on to Congress this fall due to the tremendous advantages given to incumbents, not due to the reasons these conservatives suggest. If Republicans follow the advice of this blog and pursue a far right wing course it will continue the Republican downward spiral in the polls and lead to their loss of control in the next couple of election cycles, if not this year.