February 27, 2016

Republican pollster discovers the young American left

Intercept - According to new polling by right-wing political consultant Frank Luntz, Americans 18 to 26 are extremely liberal — so liberal that “the hostility of young Americans to the underpinnings of the American economy and the American government” should “frighten every business and political leader” and “excite activists for Sanders and, to a lesser degree, Clinton activists.”

Luntz’s poll found that young Americans are optimistic about both the country’s future and their own: 61 percent say the best days of the United States are still ahead of us rather than behind us, and 88 percent are somewhat, very, or extremely optimistic about their economic prospects. But they have concerns, too. Their biggest, in order, are “corruption,” “greed,” and “inequality.”

President Obama is not their favorite political figure — Bernie Sanders is. Indeed, 31 percent said Bernie Sanders is the major political figure they “like and respect the most” — more than Obama (18 percent) and Hillary Clinton (11 percent). Fewer young people like and respect Republican politicians, with just 9 percent choosing Donald Trump, 5 percent George W. Bush, and 5 percent Ted Cruz. Bill Clinton has been nearly forgotten, with only 3 percent choosing him. Elizabeth Warren also has low visibility, chosen by just 2 percent. All in all, 66 percent of young Americans chose a Democratic political figure.

Admiration of Sanders is especially strong among the younger half of respondents, with 40 percent of 18- to 21-year-olds saying he’s the political figure they most like and respect.

They aren’t nationalistic: 58 percent of respondents said they agreed more with the statement “America isn’t better or worse than most other countries” than with “America is exceptional. It’s better than every other country in the world.” In fact, 35 percent of 18- to 26-year-olds, including 42 percent of 18- to 21-year-olds, said they considered themselves more a citizen of the world than of the U.S.

In response to the question, “Which type of political system do you think is the most compassionate?”, 58 percent said socialism and 9 percent said communism. Just 33 percent chose capitalism. Sixty-six percent of the poll’s respondents said corporate America “embodies everything that is wrong about America.”

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Let's just hope their optimism remains intact after Bernie predictably lays down and packs up shop. Bernie's 'team' was able to generate an impressive amount of cash, create a lot noise on the internet, and capture the imaginations of a lot energized young people. That's all to the good, however, the Bernie campaign has failed miserably in establishing any kind of cohesive and meaningful movement. Beyond mindless sloganeering and scooping up cash the 'revolution' has little to show.

Anonymous said...

The key in voting is to pick the candidate who will not start a nuclear war. We are buying time until these kids are old enough to take over and clean house.

Anonymous said...

10:53 AM,
Couldn't agree more. This pretty much eliminates all of those running within the Republican/Democratic duopoly.
However, there is one authentic peace candidate running, Dr Jill Stein. She's the real establishment threat and savvy observers of the scene know better than to discount her potential. Bernie's primary function has been one of misdirection and distraction, targeting this same potentially influential demographic. Should Dr Stein manage to successfully capture their attention, then perhaps...

Anonymous said...

The Bernie campaign is fighting for its life against the biggest impediment to real change - the sclerotic Democratic Party establishment.

Anonymous said...

6:33,
We're agreed, Bernie is up against one of the biggest impediments to change, and yes, it is deeply connected to sclerotic Democratic Party thinking. Take a close examination of the establishment mercenaries orchestrating this campaign fiasco. Look up their prior records. Check out for whom and what they've worked.