So much for that ‘backlash’

March 29, 2007

Several pundits have declared the point so obvious that it became instant conventional wisdom: Democrats on the Hill want to hold the administration accountable through oversight, but the public doesn’t care.

David Broder said there’s no political upside to the prosecutor purge scandal, so Dems should focus attention elsewhere. John Harwood and Brian Williams said Dems are risking a “backlash.” Time managing editor Richard Stengel claimed that he is “so uninterested in the Democrats wanting Karl Rove because it is so bad for them, because it shows business as usual, tit for tat, vengeance,” adding: “That’s not what voters want to see.”

We’ve already seen some evidence that the media’s assumptions are misplaced, but the closer one looks at the question, the more wrong the “backlash” argument becomes.

The Democrats’ stepped-up pace of investigations has not drawn much in the way of negative reaction. Just 31% believe Congress is spending too much time investigating possible government wrongdoing, while slightly more (35%) say they are spending too little time on this, and a quarter believe that the time spent on investigations has been appropriate.

Republicans are more likely than Democrats or independents to say that Congress is spending too much time on investigating possible wrongdoing. Still, only about half of Republicans (48%) express this view, while nearly as many say Congress is spending too little time (24%), or the right amount of time (20%), on investigations.

In addition, more independents say Congress is spending too little time on investigations than too much (by 39%-29%). Roughly the same number of Democrats as independents say Congress is devoting too little time to investigations.

In some ways, I suspect some congressional Dems have considered the past couple of weeks a toe-dipping exercise — if they cautiously start to investigate alleged administration wrongdoing, will the water be too hot? Will they feel forced to draw back?

Apparently not. Americans’ interest in accountability has been woefully underestimated. The water, in other words, feels fine.

These questions (and the backlash) are fairly premature. The important question is *results* – is the Congress wasting it’s time on “fishing expeditions” or is the time spent on oversight and investigations producing results. And here – 10 weeks or so into the new Congress, it’s way too early for anyone to say, one way or another (which gives the lie to, or at least questions the motives of, those arguing against oversight and investigation).

I like the quote of the Democratic person a couple of week ago who commented something along the lines of “We’ve only had subpoena power for the last six weeks and every tree that we’ve barked up so far has had a cat in it”. That pretty much justifies everything.

  • Pundits underestimate the anger of the public. The Dems did so well in the election because people are fed up with the go-along-the-wrong-path Congress. Oversight (ie. investigations and opposition to the sAdministration) is what those who look want to see.

  • And, of course, the pundits raise the idea of “backlash” to scare off the traditionally quivering, spineless Dems.

  • It should also be worth mentioning that pre-election polls showed that there was one issue that voters were more concerned with than Iraq in 2006, and that was oversight. I think Glenn Greenwald covered it again a few days ago.

    Yes, it was here.

  • Yes of course, even when ReThuglicans are caught red-handed no one can investigate them because…people will get bored. I wonder what would happen if we applied this mindset to the entire court system? Replace juries with American Idol type audiences and have them vote on how interesting they find the case. If it is too boring the defendant goes free. Can you see Broder such a thing? No, because even he knows that would be fucking stoopid. But he sees a ReThug in danger of getting his comupance and goes all gooey.

    But the pundicks been saying this since day one. When Democrats were the minority, any complaint, investigaton or attempt to investigate was and outrage, shrill and/or a waste of time. Plame? Ha ha, they had to meet in a closet or sumthin. Lies about Iraq? Democrats hate the troops! DeLay? How dare you suggest Senator Beetlejuice did anythign wrong! Foley? Uh…um…the Democrats are homophobes!

    But like their masters, Broder et al can’t stop vomiting out the same old garbage. Let’s hope their masters keep listening.

  • The 31% who think this administration needs less oversight are the ones who think they’re doing a great job in Iraq and that Jesus is coming back really soon. The nitwits.

    Some interesting tidbits from the survey:

    Nearly half (47%) say the Democratic Party can better manage the federal government, compared with 31% who choose the Republican Party. A year ago, the Democrats’ edge on management was just four points.

    …

    Nearly seven-in-ten Americans (69%) cannot name anything important the new Congress has done so far.

    …

    In addition, more independents say Congress is spending too little time on investigations than too much (by 39%-29%). (right amount = 29%)

    So 68% of independents think Dems are either doing just fine or need to go after the crooked Republicans more..

    That’s some backlash.

  • I forgot to add something about how the media might be responsible for the fact that “Nearly seven-in-ten Americans (69%) cannot name anything important the new Congress has done so far.”

    You know, the media that thinks oversight is boring.

  • If the investigations show good promise of bringing down some big game then the people will be all for it. If not, then as long as the expense and preoccupation is not too great, they will tolerate it. In 08, only big heads on the wall will impress.

  • Just 31% believe Congress is spending too much time investigating possible government wrongdoing

    As Racerx pointed out, this figure tracks very neatly with the dead-enders who still approve of Bush and the Republican Party despite the disasters, incompetence, mendacity and corruption of the last six years. Memo to Democrats: Full speed ahead!

  • The Bush Crime Family and their flaks in the corporate house organs (which we used to call the press) would like nothing better than for all these investigations to go away. Then Congress could get back to its proper role as a rubber stamp, and the non-blog pundits could get back to (op-ed types) pretending that they’re the only ones who ever read a book or (TeeVee types) looking at their coifs and super-bleached teeth in their egomaniacal mirrors.

    We’ve got at least two more years of investigations and, hopefully, some impeachment and war crimes and war-profiteering action, as well. You may as well relax, Broder … the world has passed you and yours by. Even Norma Desmond’s waxworks wouldn’t recognize you.

  • Somehow I think the public is more worried about the Republican scandals than they are about the Democrats investigating the Republican scandals.

    Brian

  • They like to underestimate the intelligence of the American people, but this time these people are mistaken; everyone I know, no matter the party affiliation, is way pissed off. WAY! We’ve been waiting for years for someone with authority to ask a few important questions and get some straight answers. Mainstream thought is that we have to get out of Iraq and punish the evildoers who led us astray. It’s that simple;we’ve had enough.

  • Ugh. Broder & Stengel, et al disgust me. They cautiously warn Dems against over-reach. People don’t even care about PurgeGate… best to move on to other things.

    Look, here’s the bare bones of what PurgeGate has revealed:

    1) Republicans have conspired — & in some cases, succeeded — to use the Justice Dept. to persecute their political opponents. On the flip side, they’ve pressured the JD to turn a blind eye to Republican corruption and/or removed USAs that were too aggressive in pursuing investigations against Repubs.

    2) Republicans have used the JD & USAs to pursue bogus “voter fraud” cases as a means to disenfranchise groups of voters that traditionally vote Democrat, thereby influencing elections in Republican’s favour (see also: redistricting, ref. Tom Delay).

    So there you have it: This Republican Admin is using the DoJ to persecute the opposition while ignoring Repub wrong-doings. And using the DoJ to subvert & influence elections to their favour, ultimately to achieve one-party rule. Viva La Democracie! Yet Broder & Stengel think we should just ‘move on’.

  • After the mid-terms, I had hoped the Dems would take it easy on investigations. I thought they’d be more effective introducing legislation. I still feel the same about the latter, but I had also thought the Repubs, particularly the Bush Gang, would begin to mind their manners a bit.

    Turns out Bush still thinks the Republicans won the mid-terms — or that everyone is his personal servant. He may be acting even worse than before. So, I’ve decided the Dems should investigate ’til the bleed. And it’s not just from spite. Bush can’t be given any breaks at all, or he’ll complete his robotic mission from God to completely destroy the country.

  • Broder et al IS the backlash. The Dems have angered the media establishment and so they will suffer the verbal slings and arrows that the cocktail party editorial boards and pundits can heave their way. How dare the Dems investigate their friends and news sources. Karl always gives good exclusive dirt on Democrats from his network of political appointees.

    Godfather once used to be an innocuous term, now the term “dean” also has the dirty connotations attached a corrupt family boss, thanks to Mr. Broder.

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