IMO, Boehner's first Sunday appearance as Maj Leader doesn't bode well

[salin]

for the GOP in congress.

When was it first clear that the wheels were falling off the GOP machine? When congress tipped its pandering behind and thought for sure it was a winning political move to call a congressional vote for Terri Schaivo. Heck they had a piece of legislation set to go - to outlaw implementing individual's provisions in living wills. But the public didn't buy it - heck the public was actually scared by the actions.

This was followed by a year of missteps by the GOP where their read on public sentiment was FAR off from actual public sentiment - they had stopped caring... as long as the money kept flowing in so that they could keep buying the propoganda machines at election time they would be just fine....

Things have changed in the public's eye. And Abramoff is just a small part of it. More than half of americans now believe that bush deliberately decieved the public to get us behind his war. The GOP attempts to privatize social security pissed off a lot of folks. Medicare Plan B is a crisis for many. Katrina and Rita showed the country and the world extreme apathy leading to loss of life.

The biggest recent disconnect was clear when prior to the SOTU speech bush went out to the public to try to sell his "Great Ecnomy" and worse yet to try to link himself (give credit where it is due) to this great economy. Fell flat. Why? Folks reality of harder economic times is harder to think of as just 'my problem - I am unique, but things are better for others' when it goes on and on over a prolonged period of time. Pffft. Flat.

What is my point? The GOP is in trouble in the upcoming elections. But through their arrogance they are once again misdiagnosing the problem - they think it is just a "perception"/PR issue tied to the Abramoff /DeLay problems. They don't seem to get that the public is growing tired of their self-serving ways where what drives public policy is image and what makes money for their donors - and increasingly is apparant to be NOT in citizen's best interest. That is - bush's credibility gap has spread to the GOP in congress (about time, right?)

So what does Boehner say on his first Maj Leader SUnday talkfest appearance? That the war in Iraq is a "Gift" for our children. Bwahahahahaha. Just like Frist, this "new" leader doesn't get how far public perception has shifted - and how what the rhetoric they used to use successfully now rings like intentional manipulation of the public. The shoe has dropped and now *they* look out of the mainstream.

Hey John, most Americans no longer support the war - they don't know what to do about it (in terms of timelines) but they don't think it is worth it, and they don't think of it as a gift. Psst John, while some of the true loyalists accepted the shift in war rationale from preinvasion (WMDs!) to Democracy building - six months after the Downing Street Memos came out along with other supporting evidence of administration dishonesty (including evidence to demonstrate that the intel given to congress before the vote was NOT the same as what the admin had) - and most folks now believe we were decieved into war.... that suggests that some who initially bought the shift in war rational to Democracy Building... no longer do.. thus using that line now - just makes you look like more of the "say anything" GOP crowd that the public has stopped believing.

If this is the mentality of the GOP in congress - that the old lines will still work if they just put a new face on it - then they are not going to make a correction (in terms of political strategy) in time for the midterm elections.

[JeffR]

1. Well said

And reason for optimism.

Won't turn this into a an excuse for Dem-bashing, but there are elected Democrats who don't seem to have noticed the public shift either. And they too had better tune in, quick.

[salin]

2. Indeed, I would suggest that many in dems in Congress

need to look outside of the incestuous DC/Dem consultants circle for their strategists. The rules (in terms of public perception) have changed - time to make sure that those giving advice are hip to it and not using 12 year old "truisms" and inside the beltway conventional wisdom in terms of current political strategy.

[JeffR]

4. Exactly!

:toast:

[donco6]

7. I agree.

Are they that out of touch?

[salin]

9. Yes - but they haven't changed their game for years

it worked before - they don't get that the public sentiment has shifted far far away - either that or there is simply NOTHING they can offer that would resonate with todays public perception so that they are simply replaying the old song and dance and hoping it starts catching on again.

[donco6]

3. Great post - good points - one more thing . . .

I was sitting at my local bar with a bunch of straight guys I've gotten to know over the years. These are the typical beer gut, construction types who just work hard and take care of their families. I've gotten into a very few political discussion with them and they've usually been the "shoot first, ask questions later" types. But this past week, they were passing around a book "Bushisms" that someone had gotten somewhere. You wouldn't have believed the torrent of comments that the book inspired. These guys HATE Bush, HATE the war, HATE the economy . . . I was astonished at the depth of it.

Made my day.

[salin]

5. if I recall you ar in an area

that is subject to a whole lot of local rw propoganda (regligious) - which would make the awakening that much more significant (as there was additional noise to get through before the "this is BS... and another thing...!" moment to take hold.

[donco6]

6. YES! But in Denver . . . so not as bad.

But still - this is a little local tavern - not a trendy fru-fru sushi bar. I just couldn't believe these hocky-fan, blue-collar, NRA member types would be sitting there laughing their asses off at Bush foibles and going on and ON about how he lied about the war - and the SOTU. I think my eyebrows were stuck in shock mode when I left.

[salin]

10. Good sign

and a bit ironic. So much of bush's schtick in his first term seemed to be "avoid the mistakes daddy made" and "play up what worked for Reagan" - as if this could help him avoid becoming the national joke that his father became. Ironic, eh? He has surpassed his dad.

[tsuki]

8. Voting against your own best interests. I think they are finally

getting it. Two years ago, I'd walk on a job site to deliver stuff, and Rush would be blaring on all floors. Now, it's music only. And I asked a contractor if he had forbidden Rush. He said no.

It started happening about a year ago.

[salin]

11. Interesting anecdotal evidence

wonder how common that phenom is. Wonder if his listener numbers are falling.

[tsuki]

15. I have read posts that they are. Older articles, but from about

the time I am talking about.


Air America Beats Rush Limbaugh In Ratings

Despite ongoing financial woes, Air America Radio appears to have garnered a significant audience during its first month on the air, particularly among the younger listeners sought by advertisers.

An analysis of recently released figures from Arbitron, the radio ratings service, showed that in New York Air America beat Rush Limbaugh's station among 25-to-54-year-olds during the period that Limbaugh and Al Franken, the host of the flagship show "The O'Franken Factor," go head-to-head. /snip

http://www.independent-media.tv/item.cfm?fmedia_id=7428&fcategory_desc=General

Local Listeners Tune Out Talk Radio
Bipartisan Ratings Drop Follows 2004 Elections

By Paul Farhi
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, April 28, 2005; Page C01

What a difference an election makes. No, we're not talking about the fortunes of a rich and powerful democracy. This is about talk radio. And even in the nation's capital, post-election, people seem to have had their fill of politically oriented talk on the airwaves.

The latest quarterly audience ratings spell it out: Local talk stations -- both on the right and on the left -- saw their audiences dwindle during the January-March period, according to Arbitron Inc.

WMAL-AM (630), home of Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and other mighty righty talkers, was one of the big losers in the latest survey. WMAL lost nearly 30 percent of its core audience (adults ages 25-54) from the preceding three months, when the election was the dominant story. What had been an up-and-coming station a few months ago (WMAL ranked 11th among all stations during the fall) is now a middle-of-the-pack afterthought (it tied for 16th in the latest survey). /snip

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/04/27/AR2005042702181.html

[DainBramaged]

12. Potato boy did his job today, must have had breakfast

[salin]

13. Yes, I believe he did

(do his job) - which is what is so interesting. THAT is their strategy - more of the same and assume that it will start to work again... faith-based politics based on some pretty miscalculated 'faith.'

Two years ago it was thought that retaking the senate was a long-shot, and the best that could happen in the house was eroding the size of the majority and that it would take a one or more cycles/elections after that before the House could be regained.

My how times have changed, and how quickly, and how obvious it is that at least for the moment the GOP puppet masters haven't a clue as to what to do about it.

[madmom]

14. Boehner was "elected" to this position because they think

they are losing Ohio. He can bring more pork in, "see how good we are for you" and they keep their jobs.