Only 13 percent of the American public approves of how Congress is doing its job, according to a new Galluppoll. That ties the all-time low set this past December. But even fewer independents — 9 percent — approve of Congress right now. NPR 8/16/11
This snippet was taken from a summary paragraph detailing an NPR story on Congress’s “plummeting” approval ratings. As I read this a thought hit me. How freeing? If you are a hardcore ideologue then these numbers couldn’t get any better. Independents are fence sitters, people who sit on the sidelines attempting to claim the moral high ground while not committing to a certain ideology. I will freely admit I am an ideologue (just not the kind that can get elected to congress). The partisan bickering that is taking place in Congress is “turning off” the independents who like their politics nice, neat, and bland. This includes not only the demeanor of Congress but also the policies they put out. The history of major legislation has skipped about forty years. LBJ passed truck loads of legislation most of it stuff some people see as vital to our Constitutional obligation (promote the general welfare). From Nixon to the second Bush the amount of meaningful, impactful legislation that came from the United States Congress was minimal. Barack Obama signed more significant legislation (whether you agree with it or not) into law his first two years then the previous 7 Presidents ever did.
Independents claim a non-confrontational attitude. They claim to be above the fray. I call bologna sandwich on that. Independents if put to the test are ideologues. Think of the Ideological survey we did in class. Once discussion started on the topics people inside the box would move or rethink their positions. Independents aren’t really independent if confronted with a choice they will choose they won’t sit on the sidelines and say “O’ well I am an independent I can’t really take a position on that.” Independents who claim to see both sides of an argument are intellectual cheese puffs. I believe that there are people who can and do see both sides of the issue. However those people are usually ideologues themselves. To understand an argument one must be passionate about something before hand.
Every couple of years I get in a heated discussion with an APGOPO teacher from OK. He argues that low voter turnout and a high rate of independents means that people have enough faith in the American political system that they disconnect. I say that is ridiculous. The idea that apathy equates to comfort and stability is juvenile. The American public is apathetic because our politics, and our politicians have become bland. SinceClintonthe Democrats have run to the middle trying to bring in these independents. While doing this they have forgotten their history. During the 20th century the New Deal and The Great Society programs served as reminders of the power of the American Spirit. During the New Deal FDR used work programs, and entitlements to safeguard middle to low income families. WWII the economic boom that followed would establish a large middle class. FDR’s programs in particular Social Security would become a sacred cow (this means that it is untouchable) to many Americans. LBJ and his “new deal” did much the same thing it protected middle and lower income families. The 20th Century is completely different without these two major legislative periods, our country is completely different. The Democrats back in the day use to embrace their ideology (that of change and progression) now they run scared to the middle trying to win over these self absorbed power mongers, otherwise known as independents. Democrats should turn back to their roots and embrace the constituents that allowed them to influence the 20th century in such a dramatic and profound way. There are as many people out there who don’t vote because the Democrats are to moderate then the Democrats get with these loosey-goosey independents.
“Currently from NPR’s poll, 13 percent of the American public approves of how congress is doing its job and 9 percent of independents approve of congress right now.” It’s obvious from this quote that the U.S citizens are losing trust of the operations of the U.S government. However did you ask why??? The U.S unemployment rate is 9.2%, the increases in gas prices, the war in Libya. Also Obama started the stimulus spending on the top 3% to money makers in the U.S (taxpayers dollars) so that these huge companies could outsource for example IBM has 75% of jobs in India which really does not help improve our economy. Obama also is not increasing taxes on the people making above six figure salaries (like he should as a democrat) but increasing our national debt(14.6 trillion and increasing by 3.95 billion everyday). So maybe you can understand why the government would lose its supporters. And on the other side you got the Tea Party trying to screw up the U.S economy advocating for paying lower tax rate (10 percent really? we’re in debt like 14.6 trillion dollars and you want to pay less money to the government to increase debt??).
Independents are necessary to the society, it’s better to have some independent thinker rather than people who just follow the crowd who ignorantly vote for democratic or republican just because they have been doing it for the last 40 years. However it is true that independents who vote for their own little parties can get nothing done. So to contribute to society they should choose either Democratic or Republican, whichever benefits them the most. And the Democrats who are fishing for the independents are pragmatical thinkers who are doing whatever he/she can to win the candidate for president. This is inevitable. And if people out there don’t want to vote because Democrats are too moderate, well it’s their free choice of not contributing to the Political system of America.
Seems like you are talking out of two sides of your mouth in your last paragraph. Your first paragraph is strong and seems to be heading somewhere. You seem to however stop short on some of your ideas in that first paragraph. Don’t be afraid to let loose….
I would first like to say that being an Independent I can’t faithfully take sides in this issue, because I can see both sides equally.
The term coined “Independent” is used to classify those people who don’t necessarily fall underneath the major branches of ideology called liberalism and conservatism. That doesn’t mean that every single Independent is a middle-of-the-road indecisive ninny. In fact, some Independents have a viewpoint that is more extreme than both the umbrella of conservatism and liberalism.
The stereotype of the wishy-washy Independent has no basis. Take the healthcare reform law. Democrats and Republicans alike have changed in terms of the percent that have a favorable opinion of the law. Since it has been passed, the favorable opinion of the Democrats has dropped from 78% to 60%. Republicans on the other hand have seen a gain from 13% to 24%. Meanwhile the Independents’ opinion has stayed remarkably steady; from the time of the bill’s passage, their favorable opinion has gone from 36% to 33%.
Many independents are people who don’t want to be sucked up in the politics that occur in the Democratic and Republican parties and between the two. Democrats and Republicans are constantly bickering and attacking one another. It’s no longer good enough to just pursue an argument based solely on facts, both parties have resorted to he-said she-said, and over exaggeration in order to win the argument. In the recent arguments over the debt crisis the two parties couldn’t come to an agreement over much at all, and still can’t. The Republicans spent much time this past spring encouraging the public that the government was because some funding went to Planned Parenthood, the government was supporting abortions; completely failing to mention Planned Parenthood’s other functions as many unprivileged women’s source to healthcare, STD prevention, and a source sex education. But it’s much easier to say that Planned Parenthood is killing babies. Democrats are just as guilty of this denial of the facts and over-exaggeration. Both of these parties can be seen bickering within their own parties. Take the race for the Board of Supervisors seat in the Braddock District in Virginia. There, Democrats accused Christopher J. Wade of not being a true democrat, forcing him to run under the Independent party.
Promoting the idea that Democrats should return to their roots as staunch extreme left-wing individuals, will only bring harm to the political boxing ring. This will widen the gap of the ideals shared between the major parties, and then Congress really will never agree on anything. As if the disagreement over the debt crisis weren’t strong enough already, this new more extreme vision for the Democrats will rip apart the nation.
I enjoyed your post had no idea you kept up with local Virginia politics. Also love your numbers really helped to make your point.
I still don’t know where I stand on a lot of these issues that we talk about in class, but that’s simply why I took the class. I want to gain a better understanding of the governmental systems and politics as a whole. Contrary to the political stances my parents take, I lean more to the left, but not in the rebellious nature most teenagers tend to react in. However, I’ve always found myself as an independent with a hint of liberalism because I either haven’t found my exact status on a situation, haven’t understood the situation, or my knowledge of the situation is still growing and therefore changing my opinion. I believe that for it is okay for Independents to be Independents because everyone is different. And when I mean different, boy do I mean different. And that’s what makes politics so difficult. No one is going to be 100% happy, even those assisting the most in decision-making. And it’s hard for me to make an overall assumption on the Independent population because they can hardly make assumptions themselves. I realize that most of them want a chance to speak out just as everyone else in the world does, but I feel as if the major political arena is not where they belong. “To understand an argument one must be passionate about something before hand,” this statement I agree with to a certain extent. I believe that one must be the least bit passionate about something before they have a personal understanding on an argument. One can simply understand all of the logistics, rules, regulations, etc. of an argument, but still not understand how they view it. If I am only 17, then there is no way I’m going to have enough experience from the past to create passion for an argument that is placed before me in the present or near future. I believe that Independents have yet the time and/or experiences the gain a personal standing point on a topic that could possibly not even understand to the fullest potential.
here it is let me know if it works have fun