Last updated on February 22nd, 2013 at 06:46 pm
Republicans have lost the sequester battle so comprehensively that according to the new USA Today/Pew Research poll, 56% of Republicans support Obama’s balanced approach to reducing the deficit.
According to a new USA Today/Pew Research poll, 49% those surveyed support the president’s short term delay of the sequester. Forty percent think the spending cuts should be allowed to go into effect. The Republican argument that new tax revenue should not be a part of further deficit reduction is being soundly rejected. Seventy six percent of those surveyed believe that the president and congress should focus on lowering the deficit through a combination of tax increases and spending cuts. Only 19% agree with the Republican approach of spending cuts alone.
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Republicans have also lost a majority of their party on this issue. Fifty six percent of Republicans support Obama’s balanced approach to reducing the deficit. Just 42% of Republicans support their own party’s position that the deficit should be reduced through spending cuts alone, but seventy three percent of all of those surveyed think that the balanced approach should be weighted towards spending cuts.
The entire standoff over the sequester is centered around whether or not the cuts will be avoided with a balanced approach of revenue and cuts. Judging by this poll. it appears House Republicans don’t have a leg to stand on. They don’t have public support for their cuts only position, and they even lack the support of a majority of their own party.
President Obama has already won the messaging war on taxes, the deficit, and the sequester. His victory is so comprehensive that even a majority of Republicans support his position. This poll illustrates that Republican members of Congress are no longer only out of step with the rest of the country. On this issue, they are out of step with a majority of their own party.
This same poll found that if the sequester cuts go into effect, congressional Republicans will be blamed by 49%-31% margin. The Boehner plan to blame Obama for the sequester is now a verified flop. If House Republicans maintain their unpopular position, you can expect their percentage of the blame to increase in the coming days.
House Republicans aren’t going to win a battle of public opinion with President Obama. The more they try, the bigger they lose.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
