Luntz on the mid terms

Frank Luntz has some words of wisdom for both the GOP and Democrats:

First, a warning to both sides. Republicans, for their part, must realize that the voters have given them a reprieve, not an endorsement. In my polling last week, GOP voters agreed with this statement by more than two to one: "I am willing to give the Republicans another chance, but if they mess up again, I'll vote them out again, too." That's hardly a cause for GOP celebration.

Similarly, Democrats must grasp that their defeats were not about deficient personalities or insufficient communication, but about their philosophy and substance. Roughly two out of three voters agreed with the statements that President Obama "has failed to deliver hope and change" and that in the midst of an economic crisis, Democrats "had their priorities wrong."

he post-midterm realities are simple: If the Republicans don't deliver on their promises, they're finished. If the Democrats continue doing what they're doing, they're finished.

Both sides are promising to fulfill the will of the people, but people aren't asking for promises. They're asking for new priorities - their priorities.

Over the past two years, I've polled tens of thousands of Americans. Their top complaint about politicians is that they fail to "say what they mean and mean what they say." Their top complaint about government is that it lacks "accountability." Their top complaint about Washington is that "government has grown too big, too inefficient, and too out of control to do even the bare minimum things it is supposed to do."

If you think that last bit sounds like the Tea Party agenda, you are correct. Political movements are only as successful as far as they can tap into what's eating at people and verbalize what's on their minds. This, the tea party has been very successful in doing and it should be interesting to see how much the GOP takes those sentiments to heart.

Their success will depend on it.



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