Public Still Prefers Democrats More Than Republicans

The Republican Party won the White House and was able to maintain their majorities in both houses of Congress in the 2016 election. That might make some think that the Republicans are now viewed more favorably than the Democrats among the general public. But that would be fallacious thinking.

The Republicans actually received less votes than the Democrats did in the 2016 election (over 2.8 million less in the presidential election). They were able to win only because of the archaic rules of the electoral college, and some very effective gerrymandering of congressional districts they were able to do after the 2010 census (winning an off-year election where too many Democrats and Independents didn't bother to vote).

The truth is that the general public is not too thrilled with either major political party, but they still have a more favorable opinion of Democrats than of Republicans -- by 6 points where the parties are concerned, and by 9 points where Congress is concerned.

The chart above was made using information in a recent Economist / YouGov Poll -- done between December 17th and 20th of a random national sample of 1,376 adults (including 1,193 registered voters), with a 3.3 point margin of error.

Inauguration Act

Political Cartoon is by Jimmy Margulies at jimmymargulies.com.

20 Days To Go And Trump Is Still Not Acting "Presidential"

From the blog of former Labor Secretary Robert Reich:

Donald Trump issued the following tweet on the last day of 2016: “Happy New Year to all, including to my many enemies and those who have fought me and lost so badly they just don’t know what to do. Love!”

The man who is about to become President of the United States continues to exhibit a mean-spirited, thin-skinned, narcissistic and vindictive character.

Trump sees the world in terms of personal wins or losses, enemies or friends, supporters or critics.

He hasn’t yet figured out that a president holds a position of public trust that transcends personal animus. A president is supposed to represent all Americans, including those who voted against him and may continue to oppose him. 

In a democracy, those who fight against a president’s policies are not his personal enemies; they are political opponents and critics. A democracy depends on the freedom to oppose those in power, without fear of reprisal, without being denigrated or labeled an enemy.

Happy New Year, Mr. Trump. You have 20 days in which to learn how to act as a president. All of us – even those who oppose your policies and worry about your character – sincerely hope you do.  

Romance

Political Cartoon is by Mike Luckovich in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Social Security Fun Facts

Happy New Year

I wish a very happy and prosperous new year to all my wonderful readers. May this new year be your best ever!

Bad Hangover

Political Cartoon is by Dave Granlund at davegranlund.com.

Most Think 2016 Was A Bad Year For The World

Was 2016 a good or bad year? The YouGov Poll asked that question of between 999 and 2057 people in each of 21 different countries. The general consensus seems to be that 2016 was a bad year for the world (see chart above). Only two countries (the Philippines and Vietnam) had more people saying it was a good year for the world than a bad year. The other 19 countries had more saying it was a bad year -- and in the United States and Europe, that feeling that it was a bad year was overwhelming.

When the question was asked about the respondent's own country, the results were a bit different. In some Asian and Middle Eastern countries, those saying their country had a good year outnumbered those saying it was a bad year. But Europe and the United States were still negative -- saying their particular country had a bad year in 2016.

Nasty Tweet

Political Cartoon is by Mike Luckovich in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Trump/GOP Out-Of-Touch With Public On Climate Change

The Republican Party has been trying to repeal President Obama's efforts to control global climate change, both in Congress and through the courts. They claim the global climate change (i.e., global warming) is either not due to human activity (misuse and overuse of fossil fuels) or is not happening at all. They want to remove regulations requiring corporations to stop their polluting.

And they will soon have a friend in the White House that agrees with them. Donald Trump has made it clear that he doesn't believe humans or causing any climate change, and has in fact actually called global climate change a "Chinese hoax" -- denying the proof provided by by climate scientists, and believed by 97% of all the world's scientists.

Trump made this perfectly clear by choosing Scott Pruitt to be his director of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Pruitt is a climate change denier, a friend of Big Oil and Big Coal, and has a history of trying to stop clean air initiatives through the court system. There is little doubt that for the next four years the EPA will go from being a protector of the American people to being a shill for Big Oil and Big Coal, and a protecter of corporations who pollute.

But just like on many other issues (protecting Social Security & Medicaid, raising the minimum wage, closing background check loopholes on gun purchases, etc.), Trump and his GOP cohorts find themselves in a position of opposing the beliefs and desires of the American public. About 62% of the public believes global climate change is real and is caused by human activity -- and that majority belief stretches across all gender, age and racial/ethnic groups. They are playing with fire, and this issue (like some others) could easily cause them some serious troubles.

The chart above is from a recent Economist / YouGov Poll -- done between December 17th and 20th of a random national sample of 1,376 adults, and has a 3.3 point margin of error.

Finally Here

Political Cartoon is by Gary Varvel in the Indianapolis Star.

Fox News Still Telling Lies About SNAP (Food Stamps)

Fox News has always followed the Republican right-wing line in bashing the poor, and they ended the year by once again telling lies about SNAP (the Food Stamp program). Here is the reply to their ridiculous assertion that food stamp fraud is at an "all-time high" by Aria Velasquez at Think Progress:

On Tuesday, Fox News revisited its longstanding disgust for poor people with what appeared to be a simple question: “Food stamp fraud is at an all-time high. Is it time to end the program?” Their onscreen graphic cited “2016 USDA” as the source of this information. However, according to the Department of Agriculture website, the most recent data available is from 2015.

In fiscal year 2016, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, also known as food stamps) is expected to cost about $70.8 billion. If Fox News’ claim of $70 million in waste is correct, that would still mean that less than one-tenth of one percent of SNAP dollars are spent fraudulently. SNAP overall comprises about 0.1 percent of the federal budget. Compared to the $125 billion of waste that the Department of Defense recently tried to cover up, that figure appears even more microscopic.

SNAP usage overall is actually down to its lowest levels since 2011, and current program costs are slightly higher than they were in 2010. In spite of the prevailing conservative narrative, SNAP is not a wasteful program.

As ThinkProgress reported in 2013, the program doesn’t even reach millions of people who qualify for it, because they get caught up in red tape. If there is waste in relation to SNAP and other government assistance programs, it comes not in the form of the recipients abusing the system, but in the form of state governments subjecting citizens to unnecessary drug tests and other bureaucratic measures that yield few results.

The Department of Agriculture has asked Fox News to issue a correction. “We are not quite sure where this came from,” a Department of Agriculture spokesperson told the Washington Post. “We saw that there was [a] story on Breitbart. We have not issued a report on this recently. There is no new rate that we’ve published. So we’re not quite sure why they’re so interested in stirring this up.”

Happy Nuke Year

Political Cartoon is by John Cole in the Scranton Times-Tribune.

Cost Conscious (Or Not)