Voters don’t like Obamacare repeal, but other issues may sway midterms

The bad news for Republicans: Their base doesn’t like their plan for repealing Obamacare, and they don’t think President Donald Trump’s planned tax overhaul will help them. The good news for Republicans: It might not matter when the 2018 midterms roll around. That’s a key takeaway from the latest POLITICO-Harvard […] Read more »

Americans’ Approval of Congress Remains Low, Steady

The 20% job approval rating that Americans give Congress is essentially unchanged from June. Approval of Congress has hovered near 20% since August 2016, apart from a brief bump to 28% in February after President Donald Trump’s inauguration. CONT. RJ Reinhart, Gallup Read more »

To win in 2018, focus on specifics

… The historical record is crystal clear: low Presidential approval costs a president’s party seats in the midterm. … Keeping the president’s failing and flailing at the forefront of public attention is a role well-suited for the party and its congressional wing. But individual candidates need to do much more […] Read more »

What Public Opinion of the Russia Investigations Reveals About Trust in Democratic Institutions

Recent polling data on the Russia investigation underscores the degree to which partisanship taints Americans’ assessment of security politics. Not only are Americans intensely polarized in their assessment of matters related to the investigation into Russian election interference, but their assessments of the validity of intelligence community analysis are also […] Read more »