… Onstage in the debate, Jeb Bush (citing past successes in Florida), John Kasich (citing current successes in Ohio and past successes in Washington), and Marco Rubio (promising future successes) were like ghosts of the Republican Party’s technocratic past, present, and future. But few Republican primary voters are focusing on […] Read more »
Discomfort with Social Directions Marks a Charged Political Landscape
Americans by a wide margin express discomfort with the country’s direction on social issues, a potentially potent force in political preferences. Just 34 percent in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll say they’re comfortable with the country’s social direction, while 63 percent are uncomfortable. Indeed more than four in 10 […] Read more »
Taking Stock: The Political Environment in the Summer Before an Open-Seat Election
In July 2007, as candidates on both sides of the political aisle jockeyed for position in the forthcoming open-seat presidential election, the Republican Party was facing an election environment headlined by a president from their party with a 29% job approval rating. Today, 16 months before the 2016 open-seat presidential […] Read more »
In a fast-changing culture, can the GOP get in step with modern America?
… Across the cultural landscape, the national consensus is evolving rapidly, epitomized by this year’s convulsions of celebrity, social issues and politics — from the acceptance of Caitlyn Jenner’s gender identity to Pope Francis’s climate-change decree to the widespread shunning of the Confederate flag. Then came Friday’s landmark Supreme Court […] Read more »
Beyond Personalities
It’s human nature: People’s ideas about presidential races are largely shaped by their perceptions of the personalities and images of the candidates. Both voters and the media become preoccupied, even obsessed, with these factors, to the exclusion of any others. The truth is, however, that big, fundamental forces have considerable—indeed, […] Read more »
Who can get ahead in the U.S.?
The public is divided on the availability of good jobs for American workers. … Beyond the workplace, the poll suggests concerns about opportunities for success and the distribution of wealth, with many thinking both are slanted toward those at the top of the income ladder. CONT. CBS News Read more »