Sixty-five percent (65%) of voters nationwide now hold populist, or Mainstream, views of government. That’s up from 62% last September and 55% last March.
Mainstream Americans tend to trust the wisdom of the crowd more than their political leaders and are skeptical of both big government and big business (see crosstabs). While Republicans and unaffiliated voters are more likely to hold Mainstream views than Democrats, a majority of those in the president’s party (51%) hold such views.
Only four percent (4%) now support the Political Class. These voters tend to trust political leaders more than the public at large and are far less skeptical about government.
When leaners are included, 81% are in the Mainstream category, and 12% support the Political Class.
Polling conducted from January 18 through January 24 found that 76% of voters generally trust the American people more than political leaders on important national issues. Seventy-one percent (71%) view the federal government as a special interest group, and 70% believe that the government and big business typically work together in ways that hurt consumers and investors. On each question, a majority of Republicans, Democrats and unaffiliated voters share those views.
“The American people don’t want to be governed from the left, the right or the center. The American people want to govern themselves," says Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports. “The American attachment to self-governance runs deep. It is one of our nation’s cherished core values and an important part of our cultural DNA.”
In his new book, In Search of Self-Governance,Rasmussen explains, ““In the clique that revolves around Washington, DC, and Wall Street, our treasured heritage has been diminished almost beyond recognition. In that world, some see self-governance as little more than allowing voters to choose which of two politicians will rule over them. Others in that elite environment are even more brazen and see self-governance as a problem to be overcome.”
The Political Class Index is based on three questions. All three clearly address populist tendencies and perspectives, all three have strong public support, and, for all three questions, the populist perspective is shared by a majority of Democrats, Republicans and those not affiliated with either of the major parties. We have asked the questions before, and the results change little whether Republicans or Democrats are in charge of the government.
Over time, we have found that those with Mainstream views often have a very different perspective from those who support the Political Class. In many cases, the gap between the Mainstream view and the Political Class is larger than the gap between Mainstream Republicans and Democrats.
Initially, Rasmussen Reports labeled the groups Populist and Political Class.
More . . . " ==========================================
I plan on buying this book by Rasmussen. It promises to be quite good.
I believe Americans are mostly populists, wanting less government, and the govt to be out of our lives. There is wanting to keep Roe v. Wade the way it is with choice available and not much change is expected in that from the majority of the people. Apart from that, I do not sense much energy from the masses (majority) towards any other social change at this time although the voice in favor of LGBT is significantly on the increase.
People are very aware that the government is taking advantage of their power and want to curb the government's powerbase. This is part of what I believe happened in Massachusetts.
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Democracy needs defending - SOS Hillary Clinton, Sept 8, 2010 Democracy is more than just elections - SOS Hillary Clinton, Oct 28, 2010
Isn't Hillary's approval rating right about at 65% also? Coincidence? Hmmm...
I always said that...while the DNC may have selected someone else as the nominee....Hillary triumphed where it mattered -- in the hearts and minds of the people....
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