The Grand Illusion
A recent ABC news poll finds Trump almost ten points ahead of President Biden in a head-to-head match-up.
How is it that a man convicted of sexual abuse and sequential tax evasion, who’s also facing four more criminal indictments and 91 felony counts, is outpolling the President who’s accomplished more legislatively in two years than any other President in at least a decade, if not longer, and, messy as it was, finally extracted the United States from a seemingly endless war in Afghanistan?
How is it that Biden gets blamed for the inflation that was started by overspending in the Trump administration? How is it that the most pro-labor President in decades is losing labor votes to a billionaire whose every action in the private sector prior to becoming president effectively minimized or screwed labor and their employers?
How is it that people worry so much more about Biden’s age than Trump’s, especially since there’s not that much difference in age between the two, and since Trump is a convicted criminal and a serial liar who takes enormous liberties with the facts, a behavior far more indicative of senility than Biden’s occasional speech gaffes (which he’s had most of his life, possibly the result of a childhood problem with stuttering)?
In addition, the poll shows that more people blame Biden than Trump for Congress’s failure to act to stop a government shutdown, when the shutdown is being caused by the right wing of the Republican party, and when the Republicans control the House, and so far have only been able to pass one minor appropriations bill.
The only answer that makes sense is anger at rising prices and government’s failure to deal with issues – most of which failure lies with Congress, not with Biden.
But right now, it appears the majority of Americans are so blinded with anger that they honestly can’t see or think straight… and that’s a real problem.
LEM,
I’m not sure I understand it all either. Logic appears to have little to do with the perspective of the general population.
That said, I’m increasingly skeptical of national political polls and their methodologies. I have no doubt that the statistics interpreting the obtained answers are good. But few folks use land lines now – especially the younger demographic. Of those, very few answer the phone for an unwanted/unknown caller. I’m not sure how many of these polls are done on the street or online. Finally, polls are so ubiquitous that those choosing to answer the poll can certainly frame their answer in a shaded manner. Time will tell when it comes to how many show to vote and then what choices they face at the time.
The polls are most certainly biased and rarely are answers thought out but just the spur of the moment reaction. If someone is calling landlines, they are probably only getting people in probation ankle bracelets who aren’t allowed a cell phone. Any online poll has zero validity since they are so easily manipulated. The polls touted by the news outlets are always biased because they only announce poll results that make their argument. Either that they are winning and people should join their side or they are losing and people need to send money and get to work.
I saw a recent broadcast about how despite the polls, the democrats are winning the special elections. This is a better indicator of how people feel and how they will vote.
All the Biden Covid checks continued long past need and riddled with so much fraud and so many billions going to the rich, famous, and connected plus all the so-called Biden green agenda which suppresses energy production gave us inflation; all the Covid mandates and suppression of free speech, creation of the Biden censorship arm of government colluding with social media gave us deep mistrust in both government and health care officials; the debacle of Afghanistan, the real danger of WW3 with nuclear Russia which the Biden weakness shown in Afghanistan produced, the border invasion that even Democratic mayors like in NYC and Chicago decry, the clear senility signs of Biden, the incompetence of our foreign officials (Victoria Nuland lecturing the coup leaders of Niger anyone…), the incompetence of our transportation secretary and so on so forth; no wonder T is up and only his obnoxiousness and terrible end of his presidency makes Biden have any chance in the current climate; people are scared and angry for good reasons and only the fact that most Republican politicians are just chair warmers and lack the courage (that T and only a few politicans show) to confront the totalitarian inclinded leftist establishment that goeverns in the name of the almost senile Biden will make the elections even close
Your lack of largely accurate facts and your emotion make my point.
LEM
I have almost all of your books.
I enjoyed your previous books.
This new style of the great illusion is very different
I’m hoping for a return to your previous style.
Then you’ll be pleased to learn that there are four Recluce books coming, beginning with From the Forest in late January. The subject matter and setting dictated the style in The Grand Illusion books because, for better or worse, it’s difficult if not impossible to portray politics accurately without a great deal of dialogue.
LEM,
I too have read many of your books and I have to say have liked all of them. That said, I very much have enjoyed the Grand Illusion series and appreciate what you have accomplished in the story lines. That’s not to say that Liz is wrong, just that many readers have preferences. My preference is the Modesitt style in all its wonderful variations. 🙂
As a counter-point to the initial comment: I love the direction and style of The Grand Illusion. The subject matter is timely, and the practical/realistic approach to political drama was refreshing.
I would love more of that world even if from another perspective, even if not a Councilor perspective. There’d be a lot of interesting things about examining that world as a legalist or business person.
“The only answer that makes sense is anger at rising prices and government’s failure to deal with issues …”
I would add the historical observations from 09.28.2022: https://www.adl.org/resources/blog/anti-government-anger-isnt-new-source-todays-anger-different
“… Is the current wave of anti-government anger different? To be sure, it too follows the election of a Democratic president. Moreover, some of the anger—such as that against the IRS—has been traditional government-bashing largely for political purposes. And, of course, there are far more channels for viral amplification of this current anger thanks to popular digital platforms, some of which have only emerged within the past decade. …”
In other words the effect of the citizens product of celebrity Trump and the megaphone of instant ‘information’ to the millions of voters; magnifies our feelings without the interference of the calming effect of thought. Here is where I consider the media has failed our nation (and many other countries around the world).