Thought Theater

GOP: Terror, Terror, & More Terror genre: Just Jihad & Polispeak & Six Degrees of Speculation

Confirming Thought Theaters assumptions, the Wall Street Journal outlines the Republican strategy as we enter the final two months of the 2006 election cycle. At the same time, Reuters is also reporting on a new poll indicating that the threat of terrorism holds significant sway within the voting public (hat tip to Mike's Neighborhood).

From The Wall Street Journal:

While past addresses often stressed improvements on the ground, that theme is likely to be less prominent in coming weeks. Instead, Mr. Bush is likely to talk more about the importance of winning and how the U.S. is adapting to the changing nature of the struggle against terrorism in Iraq and beyond, stressing the continuing violence in Baghdad and the recent Israel-Hezbollah conflict.

The speeches also could help Republican candidates in the fall congressional campaign, despite the flagging popularity of both Mr. Bush and the war. Advisers to the president believe -- and polls reflect -- that while most people say they are unhappy about the way the war is going, they still oppose the immediate withdrawal that high-profile Democrats increasingly favor.

The plans were outlined by a senior administration official. "Terrorism is on the minds of Americans, and as we go into the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, it's appropriate and necessary that the nation continue to hear about the state of the war and the nature of our enemy," the official said. "This is a long fight that we're going to have to sustain."

Recent polling supports the notion that while Americans are unhappy with the progress in Iraq and feel the administration has handled the conflict poorly, they also remain hesitant to support any immediate withdrawal. In a recent WSJ/NBC News poll, over sixty percent of those surveyed are opposed to an immediate Iraq withdrawal...supporting the Thought Theater analysis that Americans are still hopeful of a victory in Iraq and despite their opposition to the war, they may well vote for the Party in November that doesn't preclude the possibility of a positive outcome.

From Reuters:

The Quinnipiac University Polling Institute said 62 percent of Americans were "very worried" or "somewhat worried" that terrorists would strike the nation in the next few months while 37 percent were "not too worried" or "not worried at all."

By a 60 percent to 37 percent margin, respondents said authorities should single out people who look "Middle Eastern" for security screening at locations such as airports and train stations -- a finding that drew sharp criticism by civil liberties groups.

"It's one of those things that makes people think they are doing something to protect themselves when they're not. They're in fact producing more insecurity by alienating the very people whose help is necessary in the war on terrorism," he said.

Quinnipiac's director of polling, Maurice Carroll, said he was surprised by the apparent public support for racial profiling. "What's the motivation there -- is it bigotry, or is it fear or is it practicality?" he said.

This data makes clear just how powerful the fear that is associated with terrorism has become. It also indicates just how influential it may be in the upcoming midterm election...and how that may manifest in positions taken by Americans that lack a reasoned rationale (ballot box decisions). What remains undetermined are the relative motivational value quotients between the sentiments opposing the war in Iraq and the fear invoked by thoughts of terrorism. At the moment, Democrats seem to be staking their November fortunes on the former and Republicans seem to be embracing the latter. Regardless, both parties seem content to characterize the election as a national referendum...albeit on differing priorities.

Comments

1 On September 2, 2006 at 7:12 AM, The Lemming Herder wrote —

Uh oh.

More terrorists in England reported this morning.

Have we been looking in the wrong direction?

http://dontbealemming.com/2006/09/02/is-bush-preparing-to-invade-england.aspx
Posted by the Lemming Herder at Don’t Be A Lemming!

Post a comment

Name:

Email Address:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Receive email notification of further comments.

Comments (You may use HTML tags for style)

Type the word blog below (required):

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry

© Copyright 2024