A strong majority of voters continue to favor a candidate who works to cut federal spending over one who tries to get a fair amount of it for his home district. Most also think a member of Congress who tries to maximize federal spending for his or her district has selfish motives.
Earmarks. Pork barrel spending. Call it what you will. Congress views the recent elections as a mandate to cut government spending, and first on the list is a ban on allowing legislators to steer money to their favorite home projects. But voters aren’t quite as gung-ho.
Every night, Rasmussen Reports asks voters what issues are most important to them when voting, and economic issues have remained at the top of the list for the past two years.
As the controversy over new airport body scanners escalates, voters feel more strongly than ever that the U.S. legal system is more protective of individual freedoms than it is of the nation's overall security.
Thirty-nine percent (39%) of voters think the U.S. Supreme Court is too liberal, while 31% say it’s about right ideologically, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
Maybe the new Congress should just take the next couple years off because voters sure aren’t very hopeful about what they are likely to accomplish.
A third Bush in the White House? Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush has ruled out a presidential bid in 2012 but isn’t closing the door on running after that.
Looking at the future, most voters think investing in renewable energy sources, like wind and solar, is a better long-term investment for America than investing in fossil fuels.
As George W. Bush tours the country promoting his new memoir, “Decision Points,” voters are a bit less critical of the former president than they’ve been in previous years.
Voters continue to favor repeal of the new national health care plan, and most continue to believe the law will be bad for the country overall.
Now that the elections are behind us, 76% of voters think it’s at least somewhat likely that the outgoing Congress will try to pass major legislation during a lame-duck session before the newly elected Members of Congress take office. While most expect them to try, just 36% believe they should.
Most new members of the U.S. Senate and House won’t be seated until two months after their election, and a plurality of Americans think that’s too long a time.
A majority of voters see the possibility of big things from the new Congress in the early going next year.
As President Obama and his staff consider delaying the withdrawal date for U.S. troops in Afghanistan, voters remain pessimistic about the longest-lasting conflict in American history.
While voters tend to disapprove of the way President Obama is dealing with the country's economic problems, they remain more positive about his handling of foreign policy.
Most voters think Congress should wait until the new members take office in January before tackling any major new legislation, but even more expect Democrats to try to pass major legislation anyway in the upcoming lame-duck session.
President Obama’s trip to Asia this week took him back to Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim nation, where he spent some of his childhood. Despite the president’s ongoing outreach to the Muslim world, many Americans remain wary.
Voters are ambivalent about House Republican plans to investigate the Obama administration – unless the subject of the probe is the unpopular national health care bill.
National polling firms and others sorted out the many races for Senate and governor clearly identifying winners in most well before Election Day. However, seven Senate races and 11 governors’ races were still rated Toss-Ups by Real Clear Politics heading into the final day.
Voters have decidedly divided opinions about House Republican plans to investigate the Obama administration’s performance to date. GOP voters like the idea; Democrats don’t.
