The consistency of method is a good point. So is the weighting used. Time to look up your research methodology.
To be exact, the final numbers of individuals contacted were 409 Democrats to 272 Republicans. A quick mathematical exercise reveals that 40 percent of respondents were Dems, while only 27 percent count themselves among the GOP ranks. What weâve learned about polling from the last two presidential elections, and the â02 mid-term elections, is that good polling weights Democrats and Republicans equally. This goes without saying. Every pollster Iâve talked to has said this, and CBS knows this as well. The failure of this CBS poll to weigh both parties equally just goes to show how incredibly biased this poll really is. (Kudos to the NewBusters website for picking up on this.) It is an absolute disgrace and another black eye for CBS.
First, we don't know the exact number of people contacted do we? What we know is the number of who are deemed respondents and their supposed party affiliation. If CBS wants to skew the numbers against Bush, and make it look "valid" here is what they do. They call thousands of registered democrats until they find 300 out of 400 who are down on Bush. Then they call thousands of registered repubs until they find enough angry repubs to reach a number of 300 or so out of 400 who disapprove of Bush and include them in the data. Then they call thousands of registered independents until they reach somewhat equal numbers, then they publish a poll that says Bush has 34% approval numbers, that 1200 people were polled and gave a response, and the breakdown was 400 dems, 400 repubs, and 400 independents. Geez. How idiotic are people? If they wanted to fix a poll, they could do it to make the poll appear absolutely fair and unbiased. CBS didn't try to hide anything. CBS isn't stupid, they knowingly presented the poll data, which they knew would bring about the typical right wing knee jerk Bush apologist reactions..... All of this response to the poll is 100% directed toward spinning for Bush. Any moron who looks at one single poll and draws a conclusion deserves what they get. The point is that Bush's numbers are not improving....by any polls. The CBS poll dropped 8%, that is what matters. We are going to see the same type of drop in other polls as they come out. The new polls from Fox, Gallup, etc. are going to reflect the opinions of the electorate to include Dick Cheney and the UAE Dubai port disaster..... The republicans running for congress and senate this year I assure you are freaked out over Bush's numbers if they are in a close race.
What they failed to acknowledge (until page 18, at the very bottom of a PDF version of the poll) was that CBS contacted substantially more Democrats than Republicans. it's True that "That" poll was weighted to the Dem side pretty heavily, BUT, Bush has taken a pretty hard hit (5%) in the Rasmussen Poll, which is pretty much dead accurate, since the Dubai Ports and "Civil War in Iraq" stories hit. Anyway, this is a midterm election year, so Congress as a whole is in full-tilt pander mode. Anyone who makes noise about the ports deal scores easy points with their electorate on national security. Bush, however, can stand on the "what is popular is not always right, and what is right is not always popular" principle and prevent the domestic rumblings from interfering with foreign policy. for the Next 8 month you Cant believe in polls on either side.
They did not fail to acknowledge it, they did not try to hide it. And it is respondents that are measured, not including those who were attemped to be contacted, or refused the poll, etc. Are you telling us that you respond to every single pollster who calls you? In any case, the data and the breakdown was available, otherwise we would not be talking about it. Doh! Tony Snow, Bush apologist was on Bill O'Reilly today and briefly mentioned the poll, saying that it was somewhat skewed in his opinion, but then quickly mentioned that the Rasmussen poll, which has always been favorable to Bush, also shows that Bush's numbers are slipping. That is the salient point, deal with it.... The focus on the methodology of the CBS is a red herring when we look at the reality that Bush is losing support from all sides, democrats, republicans, and independents. p.s. O'Reilly and other typical talking head Bush supporters are not talking about the legitimacy of the CBS poll, they are focusing on what Bush needs to do to bring up his approval numbers. Also of note, in the past, when people did not approve of Bush, they still polled favorably on him personally, and that is slowly changing, as polls are showing less likability and trust of Bush. During the Clinton years, when his approval numbers dropped, his likability and trustworthiness remained relatively constant, and he remains a very popular president and former president. Unless something changes dramatically over the next couple of years, my prediction is that Bush will likely go down as a very unpopular president.
Oh, the Dims may win a few seats. If they continue with their hit-and-run tactics, which they probably will, I don't think their gains will be substantial. But you're right - a lot can happen between now and the elections. Wow, we just had a civil exchange!
So did you get it ? My center - not yours. And maybe I've just commented on some issues and not on others. Like abortion - no comment, right ? It's because I'm pro life personally, but would NEVER vote to outlaw it.. And Social Security, Medicare, healthcare - I'm for it, but not necessarily the way things are run now... Are these centrist positions ? If you believe it to be so, perhaps an apology would be in order - in the interest of civility.... And really, calling someone delusional is 'insulting and without merit' and a TOS violation. Let's leave Res out of it, eh?