Bush and the Republicans need polls to shape their message and direction…
The Republicans left an annual retreat in the Allegheny Mountains with a 104-page playbook titled “Saving Social Security,” a deliberate echo of the language President Bill Clinton used to argue that the retirement system’s trust fund should be built up in anticipation of the baby boomers’ retirement.
The congressional Republicans’ confidential plan was developed with the advice of pollsters, marketing experts and communication consultants, and was provided to The Washington Post by a Republican official. The blueprint urges lawmakers to promote the “personalization” of Social Security, suggesting ownership and control, rather than “privatization,” which “connotes the total corporate takeover of Social Security.” (emphasis added)
…which is odd because Bush and the Republicans claim not to rely on polls to shape their message and direction.
“[A]s to whether or not I made decisions based upon polls, I don’t. I just don’t make decisions that way…. [I]f I tried to fine-tune my messages based upon polls, I think I’d be pretty ineffective. I know I would be disappointed in myself.”
And since Bush doesn’t believe in fine-tuning his messages based on polling data, I’m sure the poll-driven blueprint unveiled to Republicans in West Virginia over the weekend won’t feature any talking points for the White House in the coming months, right?
It’s hard to believe, but voters still have the impression that Bush is a good leader because polls don’t matter to him — all evidence to the contrary not withstanding.