People of Color Help Boost Nation’s Bleak Race Ratings

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Americans’ satisfaction with race-related matters in the U.S. has improved slightly over the past year, although their views remain subdued relative to the past.

Forty percent of all U.S. adults are now satisfied with the position of Black people and other racial minority groups, as a whole, and 28% are satisfied with the state of race relations. Both figures have increased five percentage points since January 2021, when they were at or near their all-time lows in Gallup’s trend. CONTINUED

Lydia Saad, Gallup

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Grievance is no substitute for ideas

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About a year ago, an impartial friend well-versed in the art of politics asked me a tough question, “What has happened to the Republican Party?” he said. “You used to be the party of optimism. Now, you seem to be the party of grievance.”

Having spent decades opposing the Democratic Party’s strategy mired in grievance politics, I realized he had a point. These days, the country Ronald Reagan dubbed the “shining city on a hill” is found on harsher ground, and both parties and the media have contributed to the sadly cynical place in which politics is conducted today. …

Grievance is no substitute for ideas and solutions. Nor will grievance, anchored in revenge and loyalty tests, produce candidates who can connect with voters and put together winning majority coalitions. Qualifications, vision and winnability going forward should matter more than elections now in the rearview mirror. CONTINUED

David Winston (Winston Group), Roll Call

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Status Anxiety Is Blowing Wind Into Trump’s Sails

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What is the role of status discontent in the emergence of right-wing populism? If it does play a key role, does it matter more where someone stands at any given moment or whether someone is moving up the ladder or down? …

It is hardly a secret that the white working class has struggled in recent decades — and clearly many factors play a role — but what happens to those without the skills and abilities needed to move up the education ladder to a position of prestige in an increasingly competitive world? CONTINUED

Thomas B. Edsall, New York Times

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As Omicron recedes, Americans unsure on how to live with pandemic long-term

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With COVID-19 cases starting to decline across the nation, the American public is completely divided on how to handle the pandemic in the near term, according to the latest Axios/Ipsos Coronavirus Index. As the country wrestles with how to move on (or not), one thing is clear: two in three Americans do not believe we will be able to eradicate the coronavirus in the next year. In coming to grips with the fact that COVID isn’t going away, seven in ten say they are likely to get an annual shot, if the COVID-19 vaccine becomes something that requires an annual booster (like a flu shot). CONTINUED

Ipsos

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Americans’ Attitudes and Experiences with COVID-19 Vaccines

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Since before the first COVID-19 vaccine became available more than a year ago, the KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor Project has tracked the public’s evolving views about and experiences with the vaccines amid the ongoing pandemic.

On Feb. 8, 2022 KFF held a web briefing to share insights gleaned from nearly 40 Vaccine Monitor reports based on survey interviews with more than 24,000 people since December 2020. CONTINUED

Kaiser Family Foundation

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Democrats’ Position Improves in Redistricting Tally

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Key Points
• Thanks in large part to state courts ruling against Republican gerrymanders in North Carolina and Ohio and Democrats drawing an aggressive gerrymander of New York, the Democratic position has improved in our running assessment of House redistricting so far. Republicans remain favored to flip the House in 2022.
• The new Democratic gerrymander in New York gives the party a great chance to win 22 of the state’s 26 seats, although they may not realize those ambitions fully in 2022.
• The newly-enacted Republican gerrymander in Tennessee gives the GOP what should be a very easy pickup in November. CONTINUED

Kyle Kondik & J. Miles Coleman, Sabato’s Crystal Ball

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