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54% of “political class” think federal government should have unlimited power

By: Tabitha Hale (Diary)  |  August 6th, 2010 at 04:10 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

Let’s ignore for a minute the 9% of people who have no problem with full government control, according to this Rasmussen poll. That number is disturbing in and of itself. Let’s look at this part:

By a 54% to 43% margin, the Political Class believes the federal government should be allowed to do most anything. Mainstream voters reject that view by a 94% to three percent (3%) margin.

Seem outrageous? It absolutely is. But when you think about it, it’s not hard to believe. Remember when Pete Stark came out and said it last week? When they passed bills on a “trust us, this won’t hurt a bit” promise? Clearly, they know what’s best. They are the ruling class and should be in charge. Nevermind us mere mortals that, you know, pay their salaries and actually function in and drive the economy that they are currently destroying.

A fundamental belief of the Left is that the government can fix anything that is broken in society, whether it be racial injustice, health care problems, failing banking systems, or evil little children that don’t pay for licensing when they set up their lemonade stands. There is this idea of a state-sponsored utopia in Washington that compels them to meddle and “fix” everything they can get their hands on. The private sector is just too stupid to be left to their own devices. Black people and women need “national leaders” and caucuses because we’re all just too stupid to “lead” ourselves. Small business owners clearly don’t know what is best for their businesses, parents aren’t trusted to know what’s right for their children, and when a CEO is failing, a President with zero private sector experience is to destroy him and buy the floundering company.

After all, with such a brilliant cast of characters in Washington right now, why wouldn’t we trust them to make all of our decisions for us? The idea that more than half of the people in charge of running our country believe that the federal government should have unlimited power is terrifying, and it is the very reason that we’re forced to fight this fight right now. According to these numbers, 67% of people in the “political class” still believe that the country is generally on the right track, while a staggering 84% of mainstream voters believe that we’re headed in the wrong direction. That is a better than 40% gap between the voters and the political class.

There is a fundamental disconnect between the people that we have elected to put in office and the people that make up the United States of America. We can have long conversations about how and why it happened, but the fact of the matter is that the people that are in Washington right now are there because we put them there. We are the ones with the power to change that.

So, next time we sit there in awe as the government stops people from talking about the Liberty Bell or forces people to attend government approved training that doesn’t address their profession, remember who we’re dealing with. Then, do your part to get the control freaks voted out.

COMMENTS

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  • GCBWI

    is a small percentage of the American public, so the majority of Americans who disagree with the “political class” can outvote them.

    But the results of the poll do provide some food for thought about things like term limits.

    • snowshooze

      nt

      • GCBWI
    • throwback59

      the “political class” also includes these damn federal judges, and no one can “outvote” them, or vote them out.

      • acat

        It’s called a constitutional amendment, and all it takes is… the will of the people.

        Mew

        • lukematthews

          Congress also has the power to limit the jurisdiction of the courts. It is absolute and it is without limit. We can stop the courts, but it does take political will. These people are without conscience and will fight even the most principled ideas.

          • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine

            later on this

          • acat

            especially when they’re becoming notorious for ignoring the founding documents and instead looking at “international laws” and “fairness”, that tells me the chain needs to be yanked a bit.

            Looking forward to your follow-up.

            Mew

          • http://www.examiner.com/x-1597-Charlotte-Law--Politics-Examiner Mike gamecock DeVine

            Congress required that Dist Ct hold “de novo” hearing. None was held and neither the Ct of App nor the SCOTUS remanded for same. It was an outrage.

  • disintelligentsia

    I went to the report and other reports that mentioned the “political class” but couldn’t find anything on their research methodology or definitions. Is it just elected officials? Those who work for elected officials? Unelected judges? All federal and state workers? As you can imagine, the venn diagram can get rather expansive. I’d be interested in their definitions on this point.

    The picture being painted is particularly disturbing because this is the group of people who are most tasked with defending the Constitution. Apparently they are also the most inclined to disregard it and its main purpose – which is to restrain government to its enumerated powers and leave the people to live their lives according to the dictates of their conscience.

    • GCBWI

      However, i am confident that even the most generous construction of the definition will still yield a small percentage of the total population.

      The problem is not so much that the folks who get elected (and the staffs which serve them, and the folks who work in the departments of the administrative branch) grow accustomed to the exercise of political power, it is that too much of the electorate fails to pay attention to the political class, and neglects to hold them accountable in elections, and by doing so gives up their power.

      In the last 20 months, a lot of people who weren’t paying attention have started paying attention. i hope the momentum keeps going into November, but more importantly beyond November. We all need to stay engaged.

    • IL_Glock21

      Maybe with all the wonks we have here someone has access to the methodology and raw data breakdown to see how they defined it / asked about it / and how well represented that group was within the poll.

    • ralatredstate

      in a big government way. The details are at Rasmussen’s site:

      http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/general_politics/august_2010/67_of_political_class_say_u_s_heading_in_right_direction_84_of_mainstream_disagrees

      Or go to http://www.rasmussenreports.com and look for

      67% of Political Class Say U.S. Heading in Right Direction, 84% of Mainstream Disagrees
      Tuesday, August 03, 2010

      I think some radio and TV people are discussing the poll as if there were a
      preexisting or more objective definition.

    • partyof1

      Since virtually every aspect of the heath care system has an effect on interstate commerce, the power of Congress to regulate health care is essentially unlimited.

      http://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/factcheck?id=0107

  • mustango

    I found a WSJ article which seems to clear up the definition of “Political Class”. In summary, it is based on three questions:

    - Do you generally trust the judgment of America’s people or the judgment of its political leaders?
    - Do you view the federal government as its own special interest group?
    - Do you see big government and big business often working together against the interests of consumers and investors?

    To be counted as Political Class you have to be three-for-three on the side of government, and to be Mainstream you have to be three-for-three in the populist direction. The Political Class thusly defined makes up about 7% of the electorate, with 55% being Mainstream (14% and 75% if you count “leaners”).

    Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/NA_WSJ_PUB:SB123870876819484073.html

    • disintelligentsia

      Basically, the results are almost circular or at least amount to confirmation bias. Rasmussen calls people who believe that government is good and our leaders trustworthy the “political class” and then we are supposed to marvel that people who think that the government is good and trustworthy think that the government should have more power? I would think that would be natural – if you think something is good then you’ll want more of it and if you think someone is trustworthy then you’ll be happy to give them a greater share of responsibility.

      Since the poll is not of actually of the political class but rather a poll of those who hold specific political beliefs, then it’s really much ado about nothing. I’d be more interested in it if in fact they polled the federal judiciary or members of Congress and their staff or the members of all the state legislatures. Now those would be members of the “political class.”

      • lukematthews

        is essentially just a test for collectivists. They are finding the people who are absolutely committed to a Marxist/socialist agenda that believes the government is their god and the government should rule over democratic ideals. Actually, the results of this survey, considering the pool of people, should be far more positive about the role of government and this administration. The fact that so many collectivists are souring on this Regime should give them pause.
        I agree that a poll of actual bureaucrats and government officials would be interesting. However, this does shed light on just how far we are from true democratic principles in this nation.

        • thelibrul

          I think you missed the posters point of it being circular. Of course those who believe in big government would support big government. The definition of political class is the issue. If Rasmussen also uses the same 3 question methodology as the WSJ to define political class then the results are circular. In other words, the fact that people who like big govt like big govt would be a shocking result.

          • thelibrul

            In other words, the fact that people who like big govt like big govtwouldn’t* be a shocking result

  • RedBeard

    For a very long time, I have been sickened by the worst of the political class, with Teddy Kennedy as posterboy, claiming Thomas Jefferson as their spiritual leader. That makes about as much sense as a Mexican drug cartel claiming Sheriff Joe Arpaio as its spiritual leader.

    Jefferson would be appalled by today’s political class and the power accumulated by its operatives. His own words put the lie to everything the political class quislings are doing:
    ____

    “That the principle and construction contended for by sundry of the state legislatures, that the general government is the exclusive judge of the extent of the powers delegated to it, stop nothing short of despotism; since the discretion of those who administer the government, and not the constitution, would be the measure of their powers”
    _____

    “I consider the foundation of the Constitution as laid on this ground that ‘all powers not delegated to the United States, by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states or to the people.’ To take a single step beyond the boundaries thus specially drawn around the powers of Congress, is to take possession of a boundless field of power not longer susceptible of any definition.”
    _____

    And finally, Mr. Jefferson offers a guide to a remedy:

    “That the several states who formed that instrument [the Constitution], being sovereign and independent, have the unquestionable right to judge of its infraction; and that a nullification, by those sovereignties, of all unauthorized acts done under colour of that instrument, is the rightful remedy.”

  • http://pocketchangeproductions.net/ anotherindyfilmguy

    Look at how the Feds look at themselves – as the pinnacle of the Nation itself which much be fed by the rest of the Nation and allowed unrestricted growth and power over everything down to the smallest details of our lives.

    Although it has taken this long to get this bad it is the sort of shenanigans that the founders thought we’d be fighting (with weapons and bloodshed) every few generations or so. H-O-pefully we can still reverse it at the ballot box this year and slap the hands of the totalitarians, of whatever stripe Rinos – dems – bureaucrats etc, away from the wheels of power and steer us towards a future that does not resemble Orwell’s “1984″ or the horrific experiment that the USSR failed at last century.

  • http://www.ArchitecturalShots.com mdyou

    It is time.

  • drwallst

    Sadly, the federal government ALREADY HAS unlimited power. Unlimited power to strike down state laws. The power to take over the healthcare sector. The power to tax income. To take over education from the states. The Constitution has become just another obstacle for the “Political Class” in their march towards a socialist “utopia”.
    ……………………………………………………………………………………….
    www.musingsofablogger.wordpress.com