… Today’s optimists are those who think the current partial government shutdown will allow the Republican Party to work out some internal issues — and actually make a showdown over the debt less likely. Perhaps the political base will be satisfied by a demonstration of dissatisfaction against carrying out the […] Read more »
The Politics of the Shutdown
Tuesday, Oct. 1 represented perhaps the best day for Democrats in the U.S. House this cycle. At midnight, the federal government shut down, an event that Democrats believe will greatly damage their Republican adversaries. At this point, it’s hard to see how Republicans ultimately come out of this battle looking […] Read more »
The roots of the shutdown fight
… Members of Congress are highly sensitive to public opinion, but the voters they care about most are in their constituents, which are often far more extreme than national-level public opinion. As Roe told NPR’s Melissa Block when asked about polls showing the public blaming Republicans for a potential shutdown, “I […] Read more »
Majority says raise debt ceiling
Surveys indicate that most Americans didn’t think shutting down the government in an attempt to dismantle the new health care law was a good idea. They apparently feel the same way about blocking an increase in the nation’s debt ceiling to stop Obamacare, according to a new national poll released […] Read more »
Shutdown: A fight with no room for compromise
… Conservatives have a talent for denying facts. “The American people overwhelmingly reject Obamacare,” Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said on Meet the Press, “They understand it’s not working.” Do they? Well, the public has always been skeptical of the Affordable Care Act. Americans polled last week by Quinnipiac University were […] Read more »
Americans Think GOP’s Top Priority Is Troublemaking
The two parties are portraying the stalemate over the federal budget and health reform as a titanic clash of principle, but a plurality of Americans believes that causing political problems for President Obama is now the GOP’s top priority in Washington, the latest United Technologies/National Journal Congressional Connection Poll has […] Read more »