The political class vs. the mainstream: who will win?

Via:  Rassmussen Reports

I no longer live on the East Coast, but do visit occasionally, and have contact with friends who are part of the Establishment, the Ruling Class, slurping at the trough of Stimulus Money, or if on Wall Street, turning up their noses at the ignorance the masses display of the value they’re creating, enabling the Soaring of the Human Spirit through Financial Transactions.  You get the picture.  They’ve got their heads in a place where the sun doesn’t shine, the arrogance dripping from their curling upper lips….

67% of Political Class Say U.S. Heading in Right Direction, 84% of Mainstream Disagrees

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

Recent polling has shown huge gaps between the Political Class and Mainstream Americans on issues ranging from immigration to health care to the virtues of free markets. 

The gap is just as big when it comes to the traditional right direction/wrong track polling question.

A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 67% of Political Class voters believe the United States is generally heading in the right direction. However, things look a lot different to Mainstream Americans. Among these voters, 84% say the country has gotten off on the wrong track.

Twenty-four percent (24%) of Mainstream voters consider fiscal policy issues such as taxes and government spending to be the most important issue facing the nation today. Just two percent (2%) of Political Class voters agree.

With a gap that wide, it’s not surprising that 68% of voters believe the Political Class doesn’t care what most Americans think.  Fifty-nine percent (59%) are embarrassed by the behavior of the Political Class. 

Just 23% believe the federal government today has the consent of the governed.

Most voters believe that cutting government spending and reducing deficits is good for the economy. The only group that disagrees is America’s Political Class. In addition to the policy implications, this highlights an interesting dilemma when it comes to interpreting polling data based upon questions that make sense only to the Political Class. After all, if someone believes spending cuts are good for the economy, how can they answer a question giving them a choice between spending cuts and helping the economy?

Mainstream Americans tend to trust the wisdom of the crowd more than their political leaders and are skeptical of both big government and big business.

Fifty-eight percent (58%) of voters currently hold Mainstream views. In January, 65% of voters held Mainstream views. In March 2009, just 55% held such views.

Only six percent (6%) now support the Political Class. These voters tend to trust political leaders more than the public at large and are far less skeptical about government.

When leaners are included, 76% are in the Mainstream category, and 14% support the Political Class.

“The American people don’t want to be governed from the left, the right or the center. The American people want to govern themselves," says Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports. “The American attachment to self-governance runs deep. It is one of our nation’s cherished core values and an important part of our cultural DNA.”