Some Americans—Republicans and, even more so, Independents—have become more optimistic in the past month. But not Democrats.
Democratic bloggers like to refer to themselves as the “reality-based” community. A better moniker for a community whose perceptions are so deeply entrenched that they can’t be altered by changing facts is “reality-denial.”
The complete Gallup report is here.
The sampling error is +/- 3%, so the percentage of Democrats thinking the surge made the situation better may in fact have increased (slightly). But I doubt it. And of course, it may also have decreased much more than the graph shows.
I do wonder if Dems are just behind the curve on this one, perhaps due to their choice of news sources, or have they seen the reports but rejected the obvious conclusion. Assuming the surge continues to be a success, which I hope, it would be interesting to see if Dems eventually get a clue.
Ironically, “realty-based” was how many Republicans used to describe themselves, back when they were the party in favor of ending failed government programs and decreasing marginal tax rates.
The party discipline of the US Democrats is impressive. They are well trained to respond on command. Such a loyal cadre of party comrades is vital to the cause. Discipline, comrades!