Only 25% of Republican voters want Congress to be a check on Trump? Do they understand how the Framers designed our government? Not that Congresses of either majority have shown much independence in a very long while. But the country is worse off from that lack.
If the Democrats win the house and the Senate step one should be to replace Schumer and Jeffries. Especially if they want to earn the respect of the voters and prove that the party is serious about a new direction. I don’t care what the reason is, the fact that Hakeem Jeffries met with Kushner speaks volumes about the fact that he is completely tone deaf. Not only that, he is a poor communicator. Schumer is just too old. The Democrats need to grow a spine and find new leadership that the Republicans can’t manipulate because they know all of their weaknesses.
Elliot, have you polled specific reforms & policies that are gonna be debated by Democratic candidates for the '28 election? It would be good to have a baseline at the onset of the lame duck term to see what messages and proposals shift in popularity as the new Congress combats trump and the GOP's remaining agenda and the presidential hopefuls start making their pitches.
As a specific polling question I would be interested in a question like:
If the Democrats raise taxes what percentage of the increased revenue should go to deficit reduction and what percentage should go to social services (health care, SNAP ....)? Allow answers in 10% increments
Asking "if the Democrats raise taxes" is too broad. What about asking if the Democrats were to reverse the tax cuts for the wealthy? Too many lower income folks see raise taxes and go ballistic. However, raising taxes on the upper incomes, especially those who got nice fat tax cuts from Trump would be acceptable to them.
"pick neither or aren’t sure" - should the polls also offer a "don't care" option as a way to separate that group out? I would expect the don't care share to be high among unlikely voters.
Money in politics has corrupted our democracy. I wonder what proportion would like to see Citizens United legislatively revoked and limit enacted on campaign contributions? It would be an interesting polling question.
In a related question, I would be interested to know how people feel about the incessant fundraising contacts. It seems plausible that the DNC loss of small donors this cycle is exacerbated by frustration with unrelenting campaigning.
It would be nice if when we donate to one candidate, Act Blue didn't give our name to every other candidate. I also wonder if all those fundraising emails are legitimate or if some are scans preying on vulnerable people.
Those were excellent questions to ask, and I admire your consistency in looking at the questions that decide an election. I think you were spot on about why Trump won in 2024, and 2026 tracks to 180° pointing back at Trump and the GOP.
There are so many things that need "fixing" in our government: Citizens United, stricter rules/laws vs. traditions and guidelines, term limits for the Supreme Court, ETHICS rules for Congress, SCOTUS and the president, etc.
One other BIG fix we need is better civics education. As a retired teacher in an excellent school district, I speculate that those "not sure" about Congress checking the president have never been taught about the built-in checks and balances that our founding fathers deliberately and conscientiously put into our Constitution in order to prevent the very tyranny we are enduring right now. They've never read or studied any of the Federalist Papers, which are commonly cited in major SCOTUS decisions.
Just learning and discussing the preamble is a great exercise in understanding OUR government, and how important it is to participate if we want to keep a functional democracy.
Only 25% of Republican voters want Congress to be a check on Trump? Do they understand how the Framers designed our government? Not that Congresses of either majority have shown much independence in a very long while. But the country is worse off from that lack.
If the Democrats win the house and the Senate step one should be to replace Schumer and Jeffries. Especially if they want to earn the respect of the voters and prove that the party is serious about a new direction. I don’t care what the reason is, the fact that Hakeem Jeffries met with Kushner speaks volumes about the fact that he is completely tone deaf. Not only that, he is a poor communicator. Schumer is just too old. The Democrats need to grow a spine and find new leadership that the Republicans can’t manipulate because they know all of their weaknesses.
Elliot, have you polled specific reforms & policies that are gonna be debated by Democratic candidates for the '28 election? It would be good to have a baseline at the onset of the lame duck term to see what messages and proposals shift in popularity as the new Congress combats trump and the GOP's remaining agenda and the presidential hopefuls start making their pitches.
As a specific polling question I would be interested in a question like:
If the Democrats raise taxes what percentage of the increased revenue should go to deficit reduction and what percentage should go to social services (health care, SNAP ....)? Allow answers in 10% increments
Asking "if the Democrats raise taxes" is too broad. What about asking if the Democrats were to reverse the tax cuts for the wealthy? Too many lower income folks see raise taxes and go ballistic. However, raising taxes on the upper incomes, especially those who got nice fat tax cuts from Trump would be acceptable to them.
I learn something every time I read your site.
Please tell us more about the 25% who say they are better off
Yes, I would like to know what the income level is for people in each category but especially that 25%.
"pick neither or aren’t sure" - should the polls also offer a "don't care" option as a way to separate that group out? I would expect the don't care share to be high among unlikely voters.
Money in politics has corrupted our democracy. I wonder what proportion would like to see Citizens United legislatively revoked and limit enacted on campaign contributions? It would be an interesting polling question.
In a related question, I would be interested to know how people feel about the incessant fundraising contacts. It seems plausible that the DNC loss of small donors this cycle is exacerbated by frustration with unrelenting campaigning.
It would be nice if when we donate to one candidate, Act Blue didn't give our name to every other candidate. I also wonder if all those fundraising emails are legitimate or if some are scans preying on vulnerable people.
Those were excellent questions to ask, and I admire your consistency in looking at the questions that decide an election. I think you were spot on about why Trump won in 2024, and 2026 tracks to 180° pointing back at Trump and the GOP.
There are so many things that need "fixing" in our government: Citizens United, stricter rules/laws vs. traditions and guidelines, term limits for the Supreme Court, ETHICS rules for Congress, SCOTUS and the president, etc.
One other BIG fix we need is better civics education. As a retired teacher in an excellent school district, I speculate that those "not sure" about Congress checking the president have never been taught about the built-in checks and balances that our founding fathers deliberately and conscientiously put into our Constitution in order to prevent the very tyranny we are enduring right now. They've never read or studied any of the Federalist Papers, which are commonly cited in major SCOTUS decisions.
Just learning and discussing the preamble is a great exercise in understanding OUR government, and how important it is to participate if we want to keep a functional democracy.