Americans think tax hikes are more likely than spending cuts in any deficit reduction deal that comes out of Congress and are more convinced than ever that any new tax monies will be spent on new government programs.
A generic Republican candidate has fallen into a near tie with President Obama in a hypothetical 2012 election match-up for the week ending Sunday, September 25.
Ratings for Congress are up slightly from the record lows of the past two months, but most voters still think it's doing a poor job. They're also a bit less convinced that most members of Congress are corrupt.
A month ago, they were neck-and-neck. Now President Obama has a 10-point lead over Texas Congressman Ron Paul in a hypothetical Election 2012 matchup.
Voters strongly support term limits for all members of Congress but don’t think it’s very likely the national legislators will vote to limit how long they can serve. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 71% of Likely U.S. Voters favor establishing term limits for all members of Congress. Just 14% oppose setting such limits, and 15% are undecided about them. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
To what are Americans entitled? Government-guaranteed health coverage in old age? Government-guaranteed health coverage at any age? Subsidized housing if they're low income? Subsidized food? Subsidies for growing wheat but not making shoes? Subsidies for homeowning?
The execution of Troy Davis last week for murdering a Georgia policeman prompted controversy here and abroad, but it did little to shift opinions on the death penalty. Still, a sizable majority of Americans worries that people may be executed for crimes they didn't commit.
Republicans hold just a two-point advantage over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, September 25. That is the highest level of support for Democrats in nearly three months and ties the narrowest margin between the two parties in the last two years.
Rasmussen Reports periodically asks Likely U.S. Voters to rate political labels, and the latest national telephone survey finds that 39% consider it a positive when a political candidate is described as being “pro-gun.”
While Texas Governor Rick Perry has been widely criticized for his debate performance last Thursday in Florida, that criticism doesn't seem to have moved the numbers in a hypothetical Election 2012 matchup with President Obama. The president still holds a single-digit lead over the frontrunner in the GOP primary race.
The questionable financial dealings of solar panel manufacturer Solyndra and its ties to the Obama administration are drawing little public attention so far, but most voters agree government help is not the best way to develop alternative energy sources.
The Republicans' presidential debate Thursday night sponsored by Fox News and Google gave primary voters and caucus-goers at least one good reason to reject every candidate on the stage. The interesting question now is whether someone else will enter the race -- at just about the same point in the election cycle in which Bill Clinton entered the Democratic race in 1991.
Regardless of their views on the content of any major deficit reduction plan, voters do not expect any significant reduction in federal government spending before next year’s election.
More than a third of voters believe the U.S. legal system worries too much about individual rights when it comes to public safety, but fewer believe it puts those rights over protecting national security.
For many Americans, their home is their primary investment in the future. Concern remains at record levels that that investment is at risk, and the sour economy continues to play heavily on next year’s race for the White House.
Most Americans still don’t believe the government should help those who can’t afford to make their mortgage payments.
With less than a week to go before the end of the 2011 regular season, the Philadelphia Phillies are the odds-on favorite to win this year’s World Series.
Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann continues to fade in the latest hypothetical 2012 matchup with President Obama.
Fifty percent (50%) of Americans think President Obama and Congress should consider a mix of spending cuts and tax increases in looking for ways to cut the federal deficit, but nearly two-out-of-three adults (64%) are unwilling to pay higher taxes themselves to reduce that deficit.
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is the runaway leader in the race for the 2012 Republican nomination in New Hampshire, home of next year’s first presidential primary.
