Go-Jo: Left, Right; By the Numbers - Recent Poll Results and Policies

An interesting comparison of the poll results, of Republican and Democratic Governors, as an indication of the popularity of the respective larger policies of the Right and the Left.  It does seem to show that the majority of people consistently think the right.....is wrong.

from the Governor's Journal, ("all governors, all the time")

By GoJo Staff on July 28, 2011

MN Blames GOP

A poll taken in Minnesota for MinnPost.com says most state residents – by a 2 to 1 margin – blame the Republican controlled legislature for the recent government shutdown, not Governor Mark Dayton(DFL).

As the poll comes out, Dayton is using the three week standoff as the basis for a fundraising campaign on behalf of his party. He sent out letters earlier this week arguing the only way to correct what’s wrong with state government is to elect more members of the DFL to the legislature.

Read More: MinnPost.com – Poll Backs Dayton

And then we have another, even more popular Democrat, with numbers that every Republican Governor should envy.

Cuomo Stay Home
By GoJo Staff on July 15, 2011

A new poll from Siena College says New York Governor Andrew Cuomo(D) ended his first legislative session with a 71% approval rating. It is arguably the highest approval rating for any governor in the country.

But more than 50% want him to stay put in New York, and say any talk of running for president is premature. For his part, Cuomo seems to get that message and has been refusing opportunities to travel outside the state to raise his national profile.

Read More: New York Daily News – Cuomo Poll

Then we have the bad news elephants, the Republican Governors, who are on a steady downward slide:

Walker Disapproval
By GoJo Staff on July 13, 2011

It’s bad when the press starts reporting your poll numbers based on “disapproval,” because the number is bigger.

That’s the case for Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker(R) who’s disapproval rating, according to a new Badger poll, is 59%. One pollster blames the poor performance on cuts to education rather than the drawn out dispute over collective bargaining rights.

Walker says he’s not concerned. (my emphasis added - DG)

Read More: Minneapolis Star Tribune – Walker Poll

The results of the Ohio iteration of the GOP policies is not doing so well either:
By GoJo Staff on July 20, 2011

Kasich Slips

A new poll from Quinnipiac shows Ohio Governor John Kasich(R) slipping to a 35% approval rating. That’s a few points below the last Q-Poll taken in May.

Quinnipiac Poll: John Kasich(R-OH) – July 20, 2011

Walker says 'he's not concerned', but what that really means is that he and the other Republicans don't care, or seem to care, what people think.  I wonder if he will be concerned when he is recalled?  There was a promise made back during the 2010 election, a promise to listen.  The whole 'contract ' promise to America.  If you don't remember that, in the face of how strenuously they are avoiding doing what the overwhelming majority of Americans want, the consensus, read about it here.

They said, back then:

“Contract from America” Applauds GOP’s Initiative to Listen to the American People During Pivotal Election Year   May 24, 2010

"Tomorrow, House Republicans are launching a new initiative to “engage Americans across the country and give them a voice in creating a new agenda for Congress.” Called, “America Speaking Out,” the effort is led by Chief Deputy Whip, Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).

Following the lead of the Contract from America, the GOP’s initiative seems to acknowledge the fundamental relationship between the American people and their representatives; a relationship founded on the notion that representatives are elected by the American people to advance the people’s priorities, not their own."

They said it, they wrote it, they campaigned on it; but they never meant it.

The right, the GOP, the Tea Party, the conservatives of all stripes aren't listening to the people, not at all. If you have any doubt, look at the polls above; then look at the some two dozen earlier polls here, which show a very different consensus from the right. Those polls date back month after month after month, from July back to January 2011.  I could go back further, but the past seven months make the point.

It is time NOW to work on remembering this, and reminding others, between now and the 2012 elections.  Maybe THEN the Republicans will realize that they should have been concerned, all along, and that the should have kept their promises, about jobs, but especially about listening.