Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

Let's see, who has more of an impact on the American electorate, Colin Powell or Joe the Plumber?

Colin Powell is exciting those who are already in the tank for Obama: the media, the Democrats, the Washington cocktail circuit, the entertainment industry, folks who already have their minds made up. His endorsement will matter little in comparison to the effect that Mr. Obama's answer to Joe Plumber's question about taxes.

"Spread the wealth" will be words that echo for years to come as the three words that gave McCain the window of opportunity to hammer on the notion that Obama revealed what he intrinsically is: a believer in socialism. Or these words will haunt us after four years of higher taxes and an economy mired deeper than it already is as a result.

Colin Powell's words Sunday will be a distant memory four years from now. Joe the Plumber's question and BO's answer will be remembered for better or worse for many years to come for either what it cost Obama, or what it cost us.

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

This is true.

What I think is funny is that the Obama Alligator (his attack & spin machine) has investigated, investigated, investigated Joe the Plumber. This is just perfect! They could not have provided a better response if we had asked for it. The Alligator thinks that this is just about one guy, and that discrediting him will take away this particular foil from McCain.

The truth is, the "Joe the Plumber" moment was a referendum on the American Dream, and all of America observed that the Alligator wants to make the dream go away with the wave of a hand, and all of America observed the Alligator viciously attack the representative dreamer who dared ask burdensome questions.

Individual economic liberty appeals to those who believe that they can achieve better than average. Socialism appeals to those who believe that their ability to achieve is below average, as it gives them something for nothing to make up the gap. Thanks to the swimming success of "the long march through the institutions," more Americans than ever are convinced that they are unequal to the task of achieving success for themselves in this country. Thank you political correctness, for our ever-prevalent "everybody's a victim" mentality. Thank you Great Society, for the destruction of the urban nuclear family. Thank you radical teachers and professors, for indoctrinating instead of educating. Thank you activist judges. :tic

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

Great post Carl!

What Obama and his allies are proposing is "Trickle Up Poverty".

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

A new Suffolk University poll out says that Joe the Plumber didn't resonate with Ohio or Missouri voters in any meaningful way. Focus groups that I saw interviewed after the debate last week basically said the same thing.

Here's the quote from the report on the Suffolk poll:

'Impact of ’Joe the Plumber’

"Joe the Plumber," a spectator who asked a question at an Obama rally, dominated the last presidential debate and the media coverage thereafter. However, in both battleground states, the impact on the presidential race is minimal.

In Ohio, 68 percent of respondents said they recognized "Joe the Plumber," but only 6 percent said that Joe’s story will make them more likely to vote McCain; 4 percent were more likely to vote for Obama and 85 percent were not affected. A similar finding was recorded in Missouri, where 80 percent had heard of the presidential plumber; 8 percent were more likely to vote McCain; 3 percent more likely to vote Obama; and 86 percent not affected by his story.

http://www.suffolk.edu/31491.html

I can't believe the McCain campaign is even still mentioning it. It's had little to no effect on voters and with their candidate down anwhere from 5%-12% in new polls and down 100 electoral votes, it's time to get serious, IMO.

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

On the one hand, you point out that it gained 0.5% to 2.5% for McCain, but then on the other hand you don't understand why it is still being mentioned. That's enough to change the election outcome. :dunno

There are an ENORMOUS number of undecided voters this season. Perhaps even an unprecedented amount, both number and percentage.

Plus there are more to those polls than meets the eye.

I read something recently, that I can't find now, that documented the history of pre-election polls. They almost always have error, and that error is almost always in favor of the democrat (or leftist). There was a lot of discussion about the reasons for such things:

Level of grassroots excitement
conservative/liberal availability/willingness to talk to pollsters
weighting of polls against voter registration skewed by activist voter registration drives
conservative/liberal notions of privacy and keeping opinion in confidence

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

More fun with statistics

Here is an essay that is not only fun to read, but is also cause for optimism, good cheer, and maintenance of hope:

Eighty-Four Percent Say They'd Never Lie to a Pollster

Reviewing the polls printed in The New York Times and The Washington Post in the last month of every presidential election since 1976, I found the polls were never wrong in a friendly way to Republicans. When the polls were wrong, which was often, they overestimated support for the Democrat, usually by about 6 to 10 points.

In 1976, Jimmy Carter narrowly beat Gerald Ford 50.1 percent to 48 percent. And yet, on Sept. 1, Carter led Ford by 15 points. Just weeks before the election, on Oct. 16, 1976, Carter led Ford in the Gallup Poll by 6 percentage points -- down from his 33-point Gallup Poll lead in August.

Reading newspaper coverage of presidential elections in 1980 and 1984, I found myself paralyzed by the fear that Reagan was going to lose.

In 1980, Ronald Reagan beat Carter by nearly 10 points, 51 percent to 41 percent. In a Gallup Poll released days before the election on Oct. 27, it was Carter who led Reagan 45 percent to 42 percent.

In 1984, Reagan walloped Walter Mondale 58.8 percent to 40 percent, -- the largest electoral landslide in U.S. history. But on Oct. 15, The New York Daily News published a poll showing Mondale with only a 4-point deficit to Reagan, 45 percent to 41 percent. A Harris Poll about the same time showed Reagan with only a 9-point lead. The Oct. 19 New York Times/CBS News Poll had Mr. Reagan ahead of Mondale by 13 points. All these polls underestimated Reagan's actual margin of victory by 6 to 15 points.

From TownHall.

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

Sooooo......

According to thses polls and focus groups anywhere from 2-5% difference were more likely to vote for McCain with the polls today showing anywhere from 1-10% difference. I would think that any gain for Mac is good for Mac. The fact that the Obamamaniacs went after this guy with such poison is evidence they understand what an important and potentially devastating admission he got BO to make.

Then of course its hard to see how asking 60 voters in a focus group or 500 or 1000 Americans a question and say that these answers reflect, with a small margin of error, what 150 million American voters will say.

Re: Joe Plumber Matters, General Powell Doesn't
 

This an excerpt from Ann Coulter's editorial dated last week. I posted this same op-ed on a thread also.