You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Home Front: Politix
These folks all score around 20 - 25.
2004-08-29
Who are the undecideds in the 2004 vote?
There are only about 2.6 million of them, but they could hold the future of the nation in their hands. They are the undecideds, voters who haven't firmly made up their minds between George W. Bush and John Kerry. If this year's election is as close as expected, they are likely to decide it. They are still open to either man, a penetrating new survey shows, but they have two main complaints: They don't like President Bush's war in Iraq, and they simply don't like Senator Kerry. Said Kurt Trachte, 47, a construction worker from St. Charles, Mo.: "I massively want Bush to lose, but I don't like Kerry."

Yet nearly 9 out of 10 say they're certain to vote - although most plan to wait until the final days, if not hours, to decide. In perhaps a bad omen for Bush, more of the undecideds voted for him in 2000 than for Democrat Al Gore, indicating that Bush hasn't persuaded them to stay with him after four years in office. Some 58.7 percent voted for Bush in 2000, while 24.7 percent voted for Al Gore.
Posted by:RJB in JC MO

#7  To hell with that, I'm 20 and I scored a 36.
Posted by: Anonymous6211   2004-08-30 2:11:36 AM  

#6  GW41- Should have been a great president. Something got lost in the shuffle. But I think he would of been fine to hang out with. And he would have tolerated a smirph like me gracefully.

Clinton- Big man on campus guy, the easily lead all want to hang with these guys, be in the in-crowed. I soon tire of their ego and wouldn't want to spend any more time with him than I had to. And he wouldn't want me around long as I wouldn't laugh at his jokes or do his dirty work.

Gore- Are you kidding me. Just a punk trying to be a BMOC. Thats why Clinton let him hang around. Like all of Clintons team, weak and sorta freaky. So I could never hang out with such a puke. And he wouldn't like me at all. As I would be out of his percieved class.

Leiverman- An OK guy. Hangs out with flakes though. I could hang with the guy but he would have to lose his friends. And I would tell him that and that would make him uncomfortable with me.

Cheney- "Can I hang out with you Mr Cheney, Sir? And can I tell Teddi to go fuck off." He would tell me to get my act together first. He would know some guys who could get me all straightened out. He'd get right on it and I'd be a better person.

JfingK- He wishes he was as BMOC as Clinton. Pretends to be and hopes everybody thinks it is so. I would love to hang out with the twerp as long as I could have some of the drugs Teresa is ingesting and the Shushi is fresh.

"Fresh Lucky? Tadashi is on staff and we fly in the most wonderful catch every morning. Frightfully expensive, you know, but one must do what one must do, Oh and Lucky, see all my stuff? Imported!"

Kerry wouldn't like me much as I couldn't pad his resume.

Edwards- I'd be sued, he'd have a broken nose. Wouldn't take long. He'd own everything I have. I'd soon slice the tires on his big MB. I'd get caught. Life would be bad.

G43- I bet he puts on a killer BBQ, Ice cold beer in big ice filled galvinized tubs and a place to sleep if I get to toasty. All in good spirits and jovial companionship. The music would be just a tumbl'n tumbleweed. He would tolerate me graciuosly much as his dad would have. I would feel welcomed at the next Ho-down too. But he'd tell me to mind my manners and remember the other guest, that I should mingle around and don't forget tommorrow is Sunday and make sure I wear clean cloths, ya know, "cowboy-up some Lucky."

"Sure boss. it's gonna be a purty morn'n, think I'll keep the fire goin alnight."
Posted by: Lucky   2004-08-29 8:19:09 PM  

#5  Actually I don't think the overall description of the undecided in this poll is not that far from the truth. Some of the descriptor categories seem somewhat whimsical, but those type of questions were likely to put the people at ease with "fun" questions[astrology signs, dog vs cat owner, etc]. Zogby's interpretation of poll results seem skewed at times as well. But if you set aside the 2 things, just looking at the responses, I am not surprised by the profile of the independents, nor am I surprised about the positives/negatives of GWB/Kerry as perceived by this sector of voters.

Here's the profile of the "independents":
-They are more likely to be men
-They tend to be married
-They are largely white
-They are between 30 and 49 years old
-They tend to be well educated
-The higher the income, the more likely to be undecided[this is surprising because Kerry=higher income tax rates]
-The closer to the city, the more likely to be undecided
-They live more in the East, 33.5 percent, and central Great Lakes region, 31.2 percent. They are scarce in the South, 16.9 percent, and the West, 18.4 percent.[strange-I thought Easterners would be definite Kerry/Democrat Party decided voters]
-They reject party labels
-They are more pro-life than pro-choice, more pro-gun than gun control,are against gay marriage
-Only 13.1 percent had seen Michael Moore's anti-Bush film, Fahreheit 9/11 but 27.4 percent had seen "The Passion of the Christ"
-The key reason for the unhappiness with GWB is the Iraq war; 46.6 percent list Iraq as Bush's biggest failure.
-A solid 66.9 percent majority likes Bush as a person and 57.3 percent would rather have a beer with Bush than Kerry (though Bush doesn't drink alcohol)
- Bush's record as commander in chief commands their respect. Asked to name his most significant accomplishment, 45.7 percent say his leadership after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks; but only 20.2 percent say the war in Iraq
-- 46.5 percent say Bush shares their values; only 11.8 percent said Kerry does.
- 72.3 percent say they identify with a private-sector philosophy
- 46.7 percent choose protecting the country at all costs, while 28.2 percent choose seeking international alliances and better understandings between cultures
-Kerry's most formidable obstacle is that 51.6 percent say they don't like him, and 76.4 percent hold an unfavorable opinion of him

These areas might seem to favor Kerry according to Zogby:
-55.2 percent want a president who keeps his religious values out of public business
-48.4 percent consider themselves pro-environment and only 21.7 percent consider themselves pro-development.
- 31.8 percent will decide after the debates; 36.6 percent will decide during the last week of the campaign

It boils down to GWB being associated with an unpopular Iraq War versus Kerry's personal dis-likeability factor.

The debates seem very important to the independent voter sector, so let's hope Kerry comes across wooden and GWB comes across articulate, but not Karl Rove scripted. GWB is a much better speaker, IMO, when he speaks from the heart and does when he seems like he was coached by others.

Also, what seems important as to how independents cast their votes are the unpredictable events as they come up the last week of October re: Iraq or Kerry lies exposed. I think the current FBI investigation re: the mole in the DOD, depending on how it plays out, [whether it was influence peddling to affect foreign policy or just "peeking"]has the potential to be very negative for GWB, since the Iraq War is his achilles heel anyways.
Posted by: rex   2004-08-29 4:02:08 PM  

#4  Don: I've been getting automated "push-poll" phone calls regarding the economy and "the importance of restoring Democratic control of Congress" (as if it's their natural right).
Posted by: Phil Fraering   2004-08-29 1:25:23 PM  

#3  In the last ten days I've had 8 calls inquiring on my voting 'habits'. Got to find out how my name got on the list, other than I'm a registered independent. Each time they start the script, I simply tell them I cast a secret ballot in November and hang up. Just don't understand all the trouble we went to in order to obtain a secret ballot only to blab about how you're going to vote to some stranger on the phone line. Maybe that's just me.
Posted by: Don   2004-08-29 1:01:06 PM  

#2  Poll scat.
Posted by: crazyhorse   2004-08-29 11:45:35 AM  

#1  "In perhaps a bad omen for Bush, more of the undecideds voted for him in 2000 than for Democrat Al Gore..."
This makes no sense. You would think that undecided people tend to remain undecided until the last minute out of principal.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2004-08-29 10:36:09 AM  

00:00