Zogby Poll of Obama Voters

A recently released poll of Obama voters by Zogby was recently released and is being discussed by all the usual suspects (Rush Limbaugh, etc). And, as suspected, the results are being skewed to fulfill a right-wing agenda. Here are the results:

http://www.zogby.com/news/wf-dfs.pdf

Well, let me tell you--those who have been discussing this poll do not understand the answers and are twisting them to make our President's election seem illegitimate. And, I can speak credibly on this matter as I was one of those who was interviewed.

Let's go through the questions in order, and I will explain my own answers and what I feel are the cause of the survey results.

"Before this past election, which political party controlled both houses of congress?"

Here, only 42% "correctly" answered Democratic. But, there is clearly an equivocation here with the word "controlled." I answered "not sure," and may have easily answered "Republican," since that party's control of special interests and pundits obviously holds sway over the Congress. In fact, before I would confidently call the Democrats in control, I would need to see them holding at least 65% of the seats. I assume that most respondents thought the same way. The respondents were therefore, not wrong, but rather misunderstood.

"Which candidate could not say how many houses they own?"

Here, over 80% correctly answered McCain, and I was in that category. Much has been made of the fact that many people were able to answer this question because of media saturation despite it being a relatively insignificant detail. Of course, however, this detail is significant! And, the fact that only 80% recalled it shows that the media missed 20%!

"Which candidate said they could see Russia from their house?"

Here 87% said Sarah Palin. Sure, this was actually said by Tina Fey on Saturday Night Live, but Sarah Palin said pretty much the same thing. So this answer wasn't really wrong now, was it?

"Which candidate had to quit a previous political campaign because they were found to have plagiarized a speech?"

This one drives me nuts. About 28% answered Biden, while about 60% said none or not sure. Well, I said none, knowing full well about this allegation. The problem here is that the question says "they were found to have." I still believe in "innocent until proven guilty," and just because Biden was accused, it doesn't mean anyone "found" anything.

"Which candidate won their first election by getting all of their opponents kicked off the ballot?"

What an inflammatory question! Again, answering "none," as I did, is actually the proper action. He didn't kick anyone off anything! Should we say this about everyone that runs unopposed? Ridiculous!


"Which candidate wore clothes that their political party reportedly spent $150,000 on?"

86% answered Palin. And of course they did! What a silly, frivolous person she turned out to be, and this spending was the emblem of that vice of hers. Again, they are deflecting blame here--why is it so bad that we knew it and not so bad that she did it?


"Which candidate currently has a pregnant teenage daughter?"

Well, duh. She trotted out Trig or Sprout or Calc or Wiggie or whatever her name was on stage!


"Which candidate said that Obama would be tested in his first six months as president by a generated international crisis?"

Again, I said "none" here because of the word "generate." I know that the right-wing media tried to make a lot out of Biden's statement about Obama being tested. But honestly, why was this such a big deal? Every president is tested, and everyone knows that.

"Which candidate claimed to have campaigned in 57 states?"

Again, the correct answer is actually none, and the fact that 24% said Obama reflects not their ignorance but the attempt by the Sean Hanity types to make this into a big deal. Obama did not "claim," he "misspoke." There is a difference. Also, the misspeaking was only one digit. At the time, he was talking about the continental states, and he had one to go. So, the correct number was 47. 57, then, is only a slight slip of the tongue.

"Which candidate said their policies would likely bankrupt the coal industry and make energy rates skyrocket?"

Here, 28% (including me) said McCain) and 12% said Obama, the alleged "correct" answer. But was this answer actually correct? No, of course not. I was unaware of the statement that led to this misinterpretation because I do not listen to right wing propaganda. But, I did know that McCain described policies that logically would lead to these effects. So, I stand by my answer.


"Which candidate said that the government should redistribute the wealth"

82% got this one right. And here's the reason: most people remembered this because most people agree! When the right wing was trying to tout this as a victory, I just laughed. They are advertising for us! One of the funniest parts of the propaganda video related to this survey is when people talk about liking wealth redistribution: http://www.howobamagotelected.com/ When will the right realize that the people do not like their economic philosophy and that they prefer the government deciding how to distribute it rather than big business?


"Which candidate started their political career at the home of two former members of the Weather Underground"

Again, the correct answer is "none," and again the fact that 44% answered Obama only shows the strength of right-wing propaganda.



This sort of thing has to stop.l I only hope that the Obama administration acts swiftly to shut down outfits like Zogby that attempt to twist the words of citizens like me. My freedom of speech has been violated by this distortion, and I am not at all happy about it.